Law Firm of Katsuki, Nikiforov & Chulanont
by nerdlife4eva
Summary: Welcome to the Law Firm of Katsuki, Nikiforov & Chulanont where the sexual tension is higher than the fees. Yuuri, Victor, and Phichit have found remarkably success, despite the constant bickering between Yuuri and Victor. When the sexual tension between these two best friends erupts, bringing them crashing together in a one stand night, the fate of their firm remains uncertain.
1. Chapter 1

**Jumping right into the explicit sexual content with this first chapter. The timeline for this story (and it's eventual length) will depend on how well it is received. There is definitely cursing this time around (a variation from the mild speech in Be My Chef, Yuuri) and it is also more sarcastic and humor driven. Don't worry, there is and will be plenty of fluff to go around. (Honestly, I can't help myself, fluff and humor is my bread and butter).**

 **Happy Reading! (Also, thanks to queen-among-writers on Tumblr for encouraging me to post this here!) Also, there is fanart for this on my tumblr: n3rdlif343va**

* * *

Hot sun bore into his suit-clad shoulders as he hauled his exhausted body over the cracking asphalt. Cars moved to his left, accelerating at speeds that were surely illegal for their small street, rumbling with the sounds of job security. The sunlight stung his eyes, a product of being contained in a windowless room for the majority of the working day and the glinting reflection from the rims of his glasses. In his right hand, his briefcase hung carelessly from limp fingers, the long leather strap dipping precariously toward the ground with each step. Swinging in his left hand were a set of keys, one for home, one for his car, and two for his office, the jangling of metal on metal the only sound registering in his dulled mind. Reaching the door, Yuuri paused to smile at the white and red block letters. Law Firm of Katsuki, Nikiforov & Chulanont, Attorneys at Law was neatly stenciled above each of their names, an inverted pyramid, which stood on its point in perfect absurd balance.

The office was quiet when Yuuri unlocked the door, mentally noting the schedule of his two partners as he dragged himself toward his personal office space, stripping off his suit jacket as he went. Flinging it onto the leather sofa, he dropped his briefcase onto the floor before flopping into his desk chair. It was also black leather, with amazing lumbar support, and easily the smartest, most decadent purchase Yuuri had ever made. The dark mahogany furniture had been a gift from his parents and the computer had been his first major credit card purchase after law school. It had taken the better half of a year to pay off, but it was worth it to have the fastest computer in the office. Leaning back to close his eyes, headache throbbing into his irises, Yuuri audibly groaned when his phone rang. For a split second he considered ignoring it, but in a small law firm, you answered the phone when it rang because calls meant business and business meant paying the bills. Fishing the singing devil device from his lapel pocket, Yuuri groaned louder at the name on the caller idea. Unlocking it with a bitter swipe of his thumb, Yuuri answered it with a singular "What?"

"Is that any way to greet people, Mr. Katsuki?"

Victor's voice teased him from the other end of the phone making Yuuri close his eyes to shove off the frustration. Victor was his best friend and one of his two law partners. He also knew how to push all of Yuuri's buttons with very little effort. "I saw your name on the phone, Mr. Nikiforov," he heard Victor's breath hitch slightly, as it always did when Yuuri was teasingly formal. "Now I repeat, **_what?_** " Victor's sly smile on the other end of the phone was almost audible.

"I've got a client coming in any minute now. You're going to have to cover it for me," Victor chuckled when Yuuri loudly groaned into the phone, "we're still in court, some of us went to court today." The full-body laugh rang loudly at his partner's growl.

"Yes and the four and a half hour deposition I sat through this morning, that was nothing important and certainly not exhausting," Yuuri rubbed the bridge of his nose in annoyance. As his client had confidently answered each question, never shying away from the false bravado of the opposing counsel, Yuuri had gleefully watched the wind deflate from the other attorney's sails. By the time they had left the conference room, the promise of a proposed settlement offer was on the table and the amount would keep their small firm in the black for the rest of the year. Considering it was only August, Yuuri marked that as a win.

"Are you even fucking listening to me?" Victor scolded in Yuuri's ear, his voice was joking even if his words were crude. It was comical how much they cursed when conversing with each other; neither of them ever daring to speak the same way in front of their families or their clients. The vulgar teasing was reserved for the three partners, a private dialogue that was both entertaining and irritating, depending on Yuuri's mood.

Yuuri rolled his eyes, "for fuck's sake, no, I'm not." He rolled his shoulders easing the tension as Victor laughed again, the sound vibrating through the phone to grind on all of Yuuri's remaining nerves. "Go pretend you're a lawyer, I'll see you later." Pulling the phone from his ear, Yuuri disconnected the call, tossing the slim black torture gadget onto his desk before dramatically sagging backwards into his chair.

"Good luck, it's a DUI. I know how you feel about _criminals_." Victor hadn't finished his mocking sentence when he realized that Yuuri had already hung up on him. Frowning slightly, he turned the phone off, sliding it into his briefcase. Yuuri was obviously in a mood today, one that couldn't be torn apart with jokes, and it made Victor slightly concerned as he settled back against the hardwood of the courtroom chair.

Phichit was seated on the edge of the seat next to him, regarding Victor with a single raised eyebrow. When Victor finally responded to the critical tuts being lobbed at his side, Phichit grinned while shaking his head. "You two fight like husbands, and I'm the only married one!" Idly, Phichit spun the wedding ring on his finger, smiling at it fondly before returning his accusing gaze to Victor's hanging head.

Victor knew where this discussion was leading, and his temperament was not in a place where he could handle Phichit's analyzing thoughts on his relationship with Yuuri. Sighing, Victor flipped through the papers on the table in front of him. "He's really damn frustrating, why did we decide we needed him for this firm again?"

They had started a year ago with the idea for an independent firm, both leaving the comfort of their state jobs to pursue the risky venture. Yuuri had come with them, leaving the public defender's office kicking and screaming, but he still decided to throw away the steady paycheck and join their little team. If Victor was going to be honest, which he would never be out loud, Yuuri was the sole reason their firm was still alive. In fact, with Yuuri on their team, the firm was actually making money. Again, not something Victor would ever say out loud, but the passive recognition was there.

"Without Yuuri, we wouldn't have the damn firm," Phichit nodded to the front of the courtroom, noting the entrance of the bailiff. "Deny it all you want, like you deny the rest of your feeli-" Phichit's statement was cut off as the law clerks filed in and the bailiff commanded the room to rise out of respect for the incoming judge.

Cracking his knuckles in competitive gesture, Victor stood with the rest of the courtroom, winking at his client who stood next to him looking terrified. Leaning down, Victor whispered into Phichit's ear, "Let the fun begin!" He let his own smirk escape as Phichit chuckled.

Victor loved every second of it, the showmanship of presenting his case, the monolog of opening and closing arguments, and the sheer joy of victory when a case went his way. It was even better when he was co-counseling with Phichit, their teamwork quickly becoming legendary in the world of criminal law. The courtroom was his stage, and he loved being the center of attention.

Watching the older judge shuffle into his seat, Victor bit back his grin, sliding his fingers under the notes he had made for the afternoon portion of their trial. The jury was set, the witnesses were lined up, and Victor was ready to add another tally to the win column on the chalkboard in his office. Knuckles cracking against his thigh one last time for good measure, Victor stood, addressing the court as his captive audience.

* * *

Yuuri sat rubbing his temples. Victor was infuriating. His laid back attitude was a direct contrast to Yuuri's own uptight efficient way of life, and Phichit had slid into the role of peace keeper out of necessity. Yuuri often wondered if Phichit felt like Chris Pratt controlling Victor and Yuuri velociraptors, a small smile cracking on his face at the mental image.

Along with being the center of the storm in their office, Phichit was also the only one who was relationship competent. His husband, Seung-gil, being one of the coolest men on the planet. Yuuri was always grateful for his company, especially when Victor dragged in whatever man-bimbo of the month he was currently getting into. It was a constant source of harassment that Yuuri never brought men around when they spent time together socially, but that was mostly because there were no men to bring around. His heart had been stomped on enough during his small attempts at dating and he wasn't going to chance getting hurt again, even with the husbands Chulanont's continuous pleas to set him up.

They were all friends, slipping into their weird balance without struggle or conscious effort. Late night study sessions during law school, cold pizza at five a.m. before the bar exam, and long alcohol-induced debates about life had all brought them together in an unshakable trio. Even when they had been sitting on opposite sides of the courtroom, Phichit and Victor as prosecuting as district attorneys and Yuuri as defending each client with his whole heart, they had maintained their bond. Their existence, even when Victor was intolerable, was the center of Yuuri's whole world and when they had asked him to join their firm, the hesitation had been minimal. Going out on their own was a terrifying concept, but Yuuri had been worn down in his job and aching to explore other areas of the law.

Now that he had escaped the overflowing workload of the public defender's office, Yuuri found his patience for criminals no longer existed. There had always been a handful of clients who truly wanted Yuuri's help, and he had thrown himself at those cases, preserving his sanity by helping every person who was willing to work to save themselves. Unfortunately, the vast majority of his caseload was filled with people who didn't want to get out of their own way, they merely wanted Yuuri to get them off their current charges so they could go rack up new ones. It was frighteningly frustrating to watch the same faces circle through his office again and again, and Yuuri felt the strands of his sanity snapping with each passing day. He was always determined to help anyone who was willing to help themselves, but he had learned quickly that his efforts were mostly a solo adventure.

Yuuri had found his nerves frayed and unable to continue to tackle criminal law, an acknowledged fault of his own and not a reflection on their current client base. Even smaller cases, like Victor's newest DUI client, were a source of irrational irritation. Law school had taught them all that everyone deserved fair and equal representation, but after two years of constant excuses and lies, Yuuri had lost his will to fight on behalf of the defendants of the world. Knowing this, he stuck with all the detail-oriented cases, helping guide his partners in their criminal law work only when they needed his assistance to prep a defense. That had been the deal when he agreed to partner up with them and form their own firm, no more criminals for Yuuri.

His biased frustration mounted knowing that another DUI client who wanted to know how fast he or she could get his or her license back would be waltzing through his door at any minute. Being trapped in a conference room all morning had not helped Yuuri's level of patience, and neither did Victor's arrogant assumptions on his time. Yuuri slipped a yellow pad out of his briefcase and grabbed a pen, anticipating the arrival of his next round of misery. He didn't even know if the person was a man or woman, let alone their name. Unprepared and exasperated, he stood from the desk to respond to the ringing bell above the glass front door.

"Hello?" a voice called from the lobby. There was something familiar about the accent, but Yuuri brushed it off, standing from his chair with a grumpy sigh.

Yuuri briefly adjusted his dress shirt and tie, replacing his suit jacket over his slim shoulders before walking around the wall. His heart thudded into his stomach. Unfortunately, no one needed to tell him the client's name, as he distinctly remembered it as soon as he saw the familiar undercut hairdo and the unmistakably cocky jut of the other man's hip. Covering his shock with a bland expression, Yuuri reached a hand out to the man standing in the foyer. "Hello, my name is Yuuri," he saw the recognition cross the familiar face but pretended not to notice, "Victor is stuck in court, so you will be meeting with me." He turned on his heel leading the man toward his office. It was with great displeasure that Yuuri resigned himself to having his ass stared at, moving as quickly as possible without breaking into an actual run. As they entered the small room, he motioned to a chair, hearing the other man drop into it with a thud. Situating himself behind the desk, Yuuri ignored the small smile knowingly tugging on the conceited face now positioned with a slight lean over the desk and mildly invading Yuuri's space. He was absolutely going to murder Victor as soon as he saw him. And then he was going to defend himself in court and get away with it.

"I'm okay with being stuck with you, Mr. Yuuri," the voice was low and husky, just as Yuuri remembered it, making him feel the anger coming up in his chest. "Do you know why I'm here?"

"DUI, correct?" he wasn't looking up from his pad, "Your first one?"

"Yes, sir."

Yuuri could feel the grayish blue eyes studying his stiff movements causing him to repress the urge to squirm. Without looking up, he motioned to request a continuance of the explanation.

"It was really a dumb mistake, my mother's car broke down and I went to get her without considering how much I had to drink." Elbows braced forward onto the desk, the client's fingers moving dangerously close to Yuuri's resting left hand.

"Hm," sounded innocent enough to Yuuri, even if the encroaching hand seemed to have anything but innocent intentions. Drawing his hand back toward his chest, Yuuri cleared his throat and said, "which county?"

"This one, _sir_."

He didn't miss the emphasis on the last word. It was a feat of epic restraint not to roll his eyes. "So, let's go over some basics, what's your name?"

"Do you need to ask me that?" Muscular shoulders pushed forward, laser focused eyes now peering at Yuuri's face in an intense stare.

Looking up, Yuuri raised an eyebrow at him, "let's just get through this, Victor will be your attorney, but since he can't be here, we need to go through this in the same way you would with him." His gaze never wavered from the intruding eyes. Too many years of dealing with real, hardened criminals had given Yuuri the ability to block all emotion from his face.

"Alright, then," sitting back, clasping his hands together, "Jean-Jacques Leroy. But everyone calls me JJ. But you already know that." The flirty tone seemed excruciatingly purposeful as JJ's foot searched for Yuuri's under the desk.

Recoiling his leg, avoiding JJ's attempts for physical contact, Yuuri refocused on the computer screen in from of him. Yuuri knew his façade was only going to hold up for a little while longer, straining against the insinuating leer burning into his skin. "Any other criminal history?" Wiggling his mouse, Yuuri brought up the state website, prepared to type JJ's name into the search engine to verify he was being told the truth. Given Yuuri's personal knowledge of JJ's inability to do so, the name was typed into the search box before JJ could even answer.

"No, I have never done anything wrong," JJ raised an eyebrow at Yuuri, "well maybe one thing, but I completely regret that mistake."

Pursing his lips together, Yuuri reviewed the single set of charges on JJ's record. Even if it was the first time, he was telling the truth, the only thing on his record was the DUI.

"Alright, well, this is going to be simple, call this number," Yuuri ripped off a sheet from a nearby pad advertising a treatment center. "Even if you don't think you need to go, the court wants to know that you have at least been evaluated for a potential problem." Jotting on his pad, Yuuri ignored how JJ's fingers had attempted to reach his when he handed over the paper. "There will be two hearings, one to decide the outcome of the charges and another regarding your license, Victor will handle both, calling you the day before to prep for each hearing individually. You need to make your evaluation appointment as soon as possible, you have a week until your first hearing date, so you're cutting it really close," Yuuri sighed, looking at JJ again, finding the intruding stare to be even more intense than a few minutes ago. "It's twenty five hundred dollars for a DUI, including the second hearing. Do you want to take care of all of it now or make payments? The entire fee is due prior to the first hearing." Talking money was his least favorite part of running their own firm. A necessary evil, Victor always said. The thought of Victor and his playful wink flickered through Yuuri's mind making him frown.

"I'm good now, credit card?" JJ leaned up, intentionally raising his crotch in Yuuri's direction. If JJ was trying to tempt him in some way, he was barking up the wrong tree. By nature, Yuuri only made mistakes once and he certainly wasn't repeating the one involving the egotistical prick currently boring lustful looks into his face from across the desk. JJ snapped the piece of plastic onto the large desk and Yuuri internally congratulated himself for not jumping at the sound.

"That's fine," he collected the card, leaning slightly behind the desk to run it through the machine. "Sign here and here."

JJ took the slip of paper from Yuuri's fingers clicking the pen open and signing his name on the last line of the page. He then signed the retainer agreement acknowledging the terms Yuuri had explained. "That's it?" he seemed slightly confused by the quick meeting.

"Yup, all done," Yuuri stood indicating the door, sighing again when he realized JJ was going to require him to walk the bastard out. Again finding himself perilously walking in front of his most vile quasi-ex, Yuuri counted backwards from one hundred to keep the need to get sick under control. "Thanks for coming in, Victor will be in touch." He put his hand out to shake JJ's, as he did with every client.

JJ glanced down at the outstretched hand, slipping his own into it, and simultaneously yanking Yuuri toward him.

He stumbled, ready to voice his protest when Yuuri's words were stolen from his mouth as JJ's greedy lips descended, JJ's free hand aggressively grabbing the back of Yuuri's head to hold him in place. In a brief moment of complete insanity, or potentially sexual frustration, Yuuri started to kiss the asshole back. JJ's hand was knotted in Yuuri's hair, their joined hands pressed between their bodies. The only body part conveying how Yuuri truly felt about the situation was his free hand, which was balled into a fist and noticeably ready to strike at any moment.

"What in the actual fuck?" Victor's harsh statement cut through the room, Phichit making uncomfortable noises next to him. Although his voice was controlled, Victor's hand shook his briefcase against his leg, taking in the scene in the foyer with narrowing eyes. They had easily won their case, and Victor had bounded into the office to declare his victory to Yuuri. Instead, his vision was violated by the sight of Yuuri being man-handled by a vaguely familiar brute of a man. Victor's entire being had responded to it, his physical restraint tipping dangerously toward uncontrolled when Phichit wrapped a firm hand over his bicep. Brows pulled tight together, Victor leaned forward, ready and looking for a fight.

JJ dropped his hands grinning while rounding on the two men who had entered the small office. "Which one of you is Victor?" JJ extended his hand, pulling Victor's free hand into a squeezing shake, seemingly unworried by the angry look of the man who would be his attorney. "Hell of a partner you have, look forward to working with you, man." JJ walked out with a small salute in Yuuri's direction and a wide grin plastered across his face.

Taking advantage of the distracted glares at JJ's back, Yuuri ran for his office, attempting to close the door when it was blocked by a slender hand composed of long, elegant fingers. "I meant what I said," Victor sounded angry and Yuuri had zero patience left for him or his attitude, "what in the actual fuck was that? You can't make out with clients, Katsuki!"

Phichit appeared at Victor's side, now appearing more amused than angry. Phichit always looked amused when they bickered, no matter how loud the bickering became. "I wasn't making out with him," Yuuri didn't look up when he heard Victor scoff, "okay, maybe slightly I was, but I didn't mean to." Stopping briefly, Yuuri put both of his hands on his desk. "It's a long story, but he is your problem now. Trust me, that won't be happening again." The kiss didn't shake him up, it was only a kiss and he couldn't care less about JJ and his obnoxious existence. Victor's anger and upset over the situation, that was another matter entirely. When he got over being angry, he would tease Yuuri mercilessly and Yuuri wasn't in the mood for that either.

"It better not happen again!" Victor realized how he sounded, but he couldn't stop himself. Seeing Yuuri being mauled was an occurrence that he wasn't going to take lightly. "Seriously, what were you thinking?"

Yuuri slammed his bag down on the desk. "What is with you?" He was shouting now too, even more irritated watching Phichit silently laugh at the two of them. Phichit had gotten over his annoyance of their fighting within the first month and instead found extensive amusement in their never-ending need to quarrel. "He kissed me, seconds before you walked in, and I would have decked him if you hadn't walked in and saved him from physical violence. Phichit says clients flirt with me all the damn time, you think I can't handle myself?" According to Phichit, Yuuri was too nice or too naïve to notice the way the clients looked at him. According to Yuuri, Phichit was nuts.

It wasn't helping the buzzing in Victor's head to hear Yuuri talking about being hit on. Victor didn't find it nearly as amusing as Phichit did. "Whatever, you shouldn't put yourself in that kind of situation!" He flinched knowing Yuuri was going to let him have it now. In his disorganized haste to relieve the anger swimming inside of him, Victor had tossed himself directly into Yuuri's very accurate crosshairs.

Yuuri pushed out of his own office, resisting the urge to shove Victor as he walked passed him, and narrowly missing Phichit with an attempted elbow to his other partner's side. "YOU put me in that situation. You didn't even tell me the guy's name, how the hell was I supposed to know?" Yuuri snagged a bottle of water from their small fridge, wishing that they still had alcohol in the office. "I'm going home," he paused at the door, "are we still good for tonight?" He didn't turn around to see the relief on Victor's face or the confusion on Phichit's.

"Yes, meet me at my place at 6:30, we'll uber together and write it off." Victor hated when Yuuri changed conversational directions like that. Yuuri never let him finish an argument on his own terms. Really, Yuuri never finished any argument. With an exaggerated wave at Yuuri's back, Victor's attempt to silently convey his frustration to Phichit brought him stumbling back against the wall.

"Fine. Bye," Yuuri walked out without looking back at either of his partners, letting the door slam behind him as he escaped into the blazing afternoon sun.

"What's tonight?" Phichit quipped. He was leaning back on the wall observing his best friends and partners wondering how long until whatever was going on between Victor and Yuuri would finally blow up completely or blow over entirely.

"Fundraiser," Victor pushed from the wall, letting his bag drop on the floor as he grabbed a bottle of water and tossed one to Phichit. "I didn't ask you about it because I know Seung-gil's parents are in town. It's good to show our faces though, and Yuuri agreed with that fact, at least." His tone was still full of unreleased frustration. It was horrible the way that Yuuri could wind him up so quickly, pushing and pulling Victor's sanity like a beaten yo-yo.

Phichit wandered toward his own office. "You two should really bang one out and be done with it, ya know?" He chuckled at the shocked looked on his friend's face. "I mean, maybe then you could settle the hell down. The sexually tensed arguing is out of control." The door to Phichit's office snapped shut, leaving Victor standing dumb-founded in the middle of the hallway still trying to think of a comeback to Phichit's statement.

* * *

The music was loud and the windows were rolled down in Yuuri's car allowing the wind to whip through to steal his voice as he belted out the lyrics to yet another song. His nerves were ringing through his body and had been since the moment he had walked out of the office that afternoon. There was nothing Yuuri liked less than events where he was forced to shake hands while wearing a fake smile and sucking up to everyone around him. Except maybe attending these events with the one man who could wind him tighter than a finely tuned guitar string.

Taking an hour to get ready, Yuuri had dragged his feet getting dressed for as long as possible. The event wasn't until 7:30 and he felt it was completely unneeded to arrive a full hour early at Victor's place. An uber ride would take 15 minutes, they could walk it in 30 if they had to. Not turning down the radio, he whipped into Victor's driveway, parking in the same spot he always did.

Unlike his two bedroom apartment, both Victor and Phichit had invested in houses. Phichit and Seung-gil had a really nice four bedroom house about twenty minutes from Yuuri's apartment, an easily drivable distance to anywhere they could ever want to go within the borders of their town. Victor's smaller but equally as nice house was less than ten minutes from Yuuri. At the epicenter of their separate abodes, was the small rental space which occupied their quaint office. It was less than three miles from Yuuri's apartment, making it possible for him to run there on days that he felt motivated. Their town wasn't remarkable small, but they had reduced their living area to the circumference of approximately fifteen miles. Finally dragging himself from the car, Yuuri climbed the few steps to Victor's front door, hand raised to knock when the door flew open.

"You're late." Victor's eyes took in Yuuri's red dress shirt, tight black dress pants, and slicked back hair. Yuuri had chosen to wear contacts, his brown eyes sparkling and wide without the blue rims to block their splendid appearance. Victor felt an emotion scarily close to desire, even as Yuuri's gorgeous eyes narrowed at him.

"Can we not?" Yuuri still had a headache. Singing in the car hadn't cured it. A cold shower hadn't fixed it. Victor's snarky remarks certainly weren't going to be the solution Yuuri was looking for. Victor held a hand out, inviting Yuuri to enter the house. Sliding past him, Yuuri noticed without making a remark that he hadn't be given enough space to pass Victor without touching him.

Hesitating only slightly, Victor put a hand on the small of Yuuri's back. Phichit's words were still bouncing around in Victor's head and had been for the entire afternoon as Victor had uselessly paced through the hallway in his home. Victor knew Yuuri's snuggly fitting red dress shirt, opened over his chest with the neglect of two buttons, wasn't going to help get rid of them. "How about some liquid courage? I know you hate this kind of event." Easing himself away from Yuuri, Victor took the distance he needed to calm his nerves, circling back toward the impressively large in-home bar.

Glancing over his shoulder, Yuuri saw that Victor was completely sincere and not at all teasing. It was disarming the way Victor was watching him, Yuuri's brow furrowed trying to figure out when the punchline would come. "You know what, yes, something strong, whiskey?" Whether Victor was teasing or not, Yuuri needed something to take the edge off heading into a night of fake smiles and over-the-top schmoozing.

Snicker permanently planted on Victor's face, he moved behind the bar, lifting two tumblers with one hand while retrieving the bottle with the other, placing everything in a neat line on counter of polished wood. With a specific motive in mind, Victor turned toward the small freezer to retrieve ice, bending at the waist to expose the stretch of his own well-tailored dress pants over his ass. "Wanna sit in here or on the loungers?" It was weird not to fight with Yuuri, but also kind of nice to exist in a world where they weren't in a constant state of moderate to severe combat. When they were younger, their relationship had still contained the constant banter, but there had been more laughter than had been present in the last year.

"Loungers, definitely," Yuuri looked at his feet. Victor's smooth bend had been hard to ignore, the sculpted shape of his backside making Yuuri's mouth feel unusually dry. "Also, I'm taking off these damn shoes. What time is the car coming?" Yuuri stepped out of his lifted dress shoes and he couldn't help but laugh at the height difference. Victor patted him on the head, laughing harder when Yuuri swatted at him. There was a smile on Yuuri's face though, and Victor found that he genuinely enjoyed finally seeing it aimed in his direction again.

"It'll be here at 7:15, this place is right down the street," Victor handed over an iced whiskey glass, as he swung the bottle and his own glass, motioning toward the more comfortable chairs, "that gives us about 30 minutes since someone was late." He grinned when Yuuri stuck his tongue out at him.

"And you'll never let it die," Yuuri rolled his eyes while taking a long swig. There was no spurting. Yuuri enjoyed his alcohol strong, and took time to enjoy it now, knowing he would switch to something lighter once they reached the fundraiser. "You don't have any idea what it takes to look like this," Yuuri dramatically floated his hand over his well-dressed body, "I didn't wake up like this you know." Jokingly Yuuri clinked his glass to Victor's as he sat down in the opposite chair.

"And you think I wake up like this?" Victor couldn't resist making Yuuri laugh again, and pulled a duck face with a carefully placed hand twirling into his silver fringe. "This much gorgeous doesn't just happen, sweetheart." He laughed openly with Yuuri, once again hearing Phichit in his head, making him shift weirdly in his seat. "So, wanna tell me about my new client?" Not that Victor wanted the details which would explain the man's actions, but his masochistic brain couldn't avoid asking the question.

Yuuri scowled into his drink, "not if you are preparing for round-one-million-and-twelve or whatever we are up to," he glanced at Victor seeing the mild shake of his silver fringe. "Fine, you win." Yuuri downed his glass and tipped it for Victor to fill again. "I met JJ in a bar, like four years ago or something. We were in our second year of law school, right around the time you started seeing Derek, or Dean, or one of the eight thousand guys you dated that year." Yuuri cleared his throat, checking himself on the bizarrely jealous ring to his words. "We had a fling, maybe a week or something, and then he freaked out about… " Yuuri paused, not wanting to tell Victor the real reason, "…about something and then that was it. Never heard from him again." Yuuri's story was vague and he was hoping Victor would let him get away with it. There had been other details to the massive blow out that was the end of JJ, but Yuuri felt those were somehow less important in that moment. He slugged his drink back in avoidance of analyzing any of his own motives or thoughts.

Victor considered Yuuri's avoidance of the details over the top of his drink. They had known each other since undergrad, meeting Phichit in the first year of law school, all of them becoming fast friends over the top of thick law books and piles of used highlighters. Yuuri and his friendship was equal parts amazingly candid and full of irrational conflict. It kept him on his toes and he liked it that way. He didn't like that Yuuri seemed to be hiding something from him now though. "What did that jerk freak out about?"

Yuuri raised an eyebrow. "JJ saw me with some friends and was convinced I was in love with one of them." He looked at the ice in his glass as if it was the most important entity on the planet. There was no way he was going to look Victor in his smug eyes at that moment.

Gulping his drink, Victor pondered this new information. Yuuri had a lot of friends in undergrad and law school, and even more admirers, although he never really seemed to notice the latter. Sometimes Victor had felt he was on Yuuri's periphery but Yuuri had always invited him out and included him in everything he did. Victor was quickly reviewing every member of their friend group trying to come up with anyone that would be cause for that ridiculous guy to be freaked out. He came up empty. "Well, he's an idiot then, huh?" Victor watched Yuuri run a finger on the rim of the whiskey glass, more intrigued by the idle movement than he should have been.

"Obviously, he's an idiot," brown eyes innocently looked up at Victor under impossibly long eyelashes, "he hired _you_ as his lawyer."

Throwing a peanut at Yuuri, Victor's laughter bounced against his partner's in the small room, Yuuri's laughter coming easier now as his nerves were being washed away in a bath of whiskey. Victor loved when Yuuri relaxed, the thought burning knowing holes in his brain and making his stomach flutter. _Damnit Phichit_ , Victor cursed internally, shoving all the lingering thoughts away. Forcing a change in subject, Victor flexed from his seat, standing while extending a hand in Yuuri's direction. "Uber will be here soon. Ready for a night of fun?"

Unfolding his legs from underneath his butt, Yuuri stood with his hand lightly braced in Victor's. Feeling the numbness in his legs, Yuuri wobbled slightly, his other hand reaching out to catch on Victor's elbow. He felt the giggle bubble out of him as he attempted to regain control of his unsteady limbs, the pins and needles creating tingling sensations throughout his calves.

Instinctively, Victor put an arm around Yuuri's waist, bringing their bodies dangerously close as he laughed at Yuuri's unsteadiness. His laughter became breathy when Yuuri looked up at him. His resolve snapped. Phichit's casual taunts were now screaming into his brain, his own body desperately demanding him to make a move. Momentarily losing his mind, Victor leaned in, pressing his lips to Yuuri's in an intimate and breath-taking first kiss.

Yuuri's brain went off like fireworks. Big red ones that told him to turn around and run from this situation as fast as possible. His body, however, decided it had other plans, and turned square to Victor, letting one hand slip up into the head of ridiculously soft hair.

Victor's brain was barely letting broken thoughts seep in. When Yuuri pulled away, Victor immediately felt like a piece of him was missing. Scolding himself for the implications of that thought, Victor ran a hand through his hair. Nine years. Victor had known Yuuri for nine years and decided to kiss him for the first time on a night when he was slightly tipsy, they were headed for a fundraiser for two and a half hours, and Victor had watched him play tonsil hockey with another guy a few hours earlier. Oh and they had become business partners less than a year ago. Victor may have been at the top of his law class, but it was obvious that he was a complete and total moron.

Yuuri took a step back. Thoughts were swirling in his head while his body hummed. He had kissed his best friend and business partner. He had given in to Victor's advances, as easily as he had given into JJ's. It was official, Yuuri declared himself a world class idiot. Lost in his own private turmoil, he jumped when Victor's cell phone beeped.

In a blind haze, Victor pulled his phone from his pocket. "Our ride," were the only two words he could muster. Silently, he placed the glasses in the bar sink as Yuuri slipped his shoes back on. They walked to the car, the only talking occurring between Victor and the driver. Yuuri stared out of the window for the short car ride, refusing to look at his cab mate.

* * *

Two hours had passed since they had arrived at the bar which was home to this week's fundraiser. Yuuri had come to the realization halfway through the night that he had no idea what cause was being supported. It had made him chuckle into his champagne glass, gaining him more than a few weird looks.

Currently, he was standing with a group of female lawyers who were all talking about how chauvinistic male attorneys could be. Yuuri nodded along, thinking about Victor and Phichit, knowing that for all of their faults, he was pretty lucky to have them as partners. While all of his female colleagues complained about the way the male attorneys treated them, he internally acknowledged the level of respect his partners treated everyone with on a daily basis. Minus Victor screaming at Yuuri today about JJ, and their tendency to fight over mundane useless stuff, they had a well-functioning firm built on the foundations of friendship and respect. That respect extended to everyone they dealt with, a fact that made Yuuri blister with pride.

A passing mental note reminded Yuuri to also exclude the life-altering kiss that Victor had laid on him a couple of hours ago, which was certainly not professional in any way. He snickered into the slim edge of his glass as the conversation switched to sexual advances, oddly relating to the thoughts banging around in his own head. Sexual harassment was not a topic they discussed in their firm, none of them caring about innuendos or explicit humor throughout the entire course of their friendship. Their mutual humor hadn't changed or matured in the time of their joint business ownership, although they had finally learned to tone it down in front of clients.

Yuuri's mind wandered back to the exact moment his lips had touched Victor's, the memory temporarily rendering him speechless as the ghosts of sensations haunted his skin. Searching the bar, he found Victor standing with a group of younger attorneys, looking stunningly confident as he laughed easily with the group. When he caught his eye, Victor tipped his drink at Yuuri and winked. Between the champagne and the memories from Victor's living room, the blush on Yuuri's cheeks was entirely unavoidable.

"How do you get any work done?"

Victor turned to the curly-haired attorney on his left. "Pardon?" He sipped his drink. He knew what Chris was getting at, but that didn't mean he wanted to hear it.

"Yuuri is your partner, right? Does he dress like that at the office?" Chris was unabashedly staring across the bar at the now oblivious Yuuri. Victor found that he wasn't very fond of it. Knitting his brows together, he slowly realized that he had never really been fond of anyone who looked at Yuuri the way Chris was.

"Yuuri tends to dress the same all the time, unless we aren't working, then it's mostly jeans and t-shirts." Victor sparred a glance in his partner's direction, regretting it when he watched Yuuri laugh. His laugh was easily one of Victor's favorite sounds in the world, even if he was only _just now_ willing to acknowledge it. The realization of where exactly his thoughts were headed was enough to knock him off his feet. Holding it together enough to refocus on what Chris was saying, Victor resisted the urge to sneer at the young man.

Chris licked his lips in a grotesque manner. "Yeah, I definitely wouldn't be getting any work done. I might go talk to him though. Rumor has it he had Dave by the balls this morning in deposition. Guy looked ready to hang himself when he got back to the office." Chris waved the bartender over asking for a refill and one of whatever Yuuri was drinking. "I wouldn't mind if Yuuri had me by the balls, if you know what I mean." Chris nudged him, and Victor resisted the new urge to deck him outright. He didn't say anything when Chris walked across the bar, approaching Yuuri with an offered drink. He did sigh in relief when Yuuri took a step backwards, introducing another man to Chris. When Yuuri turned to make a face at him behind Chris's back, he snorted into his drink. _Yup, he was probably a goner_ , he thought pathetically. A little voice in the back of his head, sounding remarkably like Phichit, told him maybe it had always been that way.

Yuuri glanced at his watch, internally sighing with relief knowing that the event was almost over. He couldn't wait to get home and crash in his bed. Tomorrow was finally Saturday and he was looking forward to cuddling his poodle while watching copious amounts of NetFlix. Yuuri felt Victor next to him before he heard the purr of Victor's voice. "Ready to get out of here?" Victor's words skimmed the back of Yuuri's neck, making goosebumps ripple over his skin. Swallowing hard, he nodded, relieved to have the suggested escape and unable to control the mild shake of his body. Yuuri turned to say his goodbyes to the other attorneys closest to him, momentarily pushing away his misguided need to lean back into Victor. As the formalities were completed, they walked out of the bar into the cooling night.

"Did you call for a ride?" Yuuri was peering around, unsure in his alcohol haze if any of the cars were there for them. As long as he kept the level of alcohol consumed to a limited amount, Yuuri's need for control allowed him to drink in public without showing the effects of said drinks. The first minute he relaxed, however, usually brought the alcohol crashing down around his uninhibited head.

"Yup, can't have your clumsy drunken ass stumbling all the way home," Victor pushed Yuuri softly to prove his point, chuckling when Yuuri tried to awkwardly prevent himself from falling. "And I'm not carrying you." The glancing thought of how adorable Yuuri looked, face beginning to flush as he giggled, had Victor breathing through his own rapidly increasing desires. His phone pinged in his hand, and he directed Yuuri to the waiting car, relived to have a momentary distraction from his swirling thoughts.

Earlier they had ridden in silence to the bar, uncomfortable and unsure of what to say to each other. Now they found themselves surrounded in quiet again, but in a different form. Instead of isolated to separate sides of the car, they were sitting close, Yuuri's head resting on Victor's shoulder. Bravely, Victor placed a hand on Yuuri's knee, rubbing softly. The little noise Yuuri made went straight to Victor's alcohol clouded mind doing weird things to his thought process. Throughout the night, they had each independently contemplated the kiss and their body language served as proof as to where they had landed on the matter.

"If you did that to my feet, I would be really happy," Yuuri pouted at the end of his legs, "stupid make-me-taller-so-I-can-be-more-intimidating shoes." He heard the ridiculous sentence escape his mouth, pouting harder as he registered the alcohol beginning to affect him. Yuuri flicked his shoes off, sighing back against Victor with his bottom lip still poked out.

That little pout was not helping Victor avoid wanting to restart their living room kiss. His brain told him to back off, and yet he had no desire to listen. If they weren't on solid ground after almost a decade of chaos filled squabbling and friendship, then they never would be. His drunk brain told him that made perfect sense. "I will when we get back, promise." What the heck was wrong with his voice? He sounded like he was trying to seduce Yuuri. Somewhere in the back of his mind, the thought that he _was_ trying to seduce Yuuri swam around, but he tried to force that part down.

"I'm not rubbing yours though," Yuuri giggled when the driver chortled in the front seat. He had no doubt that the driver was starting to wonder if the backseat was going to become x-rated. Dropping his gaze, Yuuri studied the neckline of his shirt to avoid concentrating on Victor's fingers which were still massaging the area near his knee. Suddenly self-conscious, Yuuri sat up, pulling at the plunge in his dress shirt. Face crinkling as he looked up at Victor, his pout deepened with his barely contained jutted bottom lip. "You could have warned me that my nipples were basically hanging out."

Victor could pretend that he hadn't noticed the dangerous dip in Yuuri's shirt, brought on by the careless release of a third button, but he wasn't up for the lie. Peering down at the beautifully rich brown eyes with one eyebrow raised, Victor smirked, "why would I do that? You do know that I am a man, right?"

Shoving Victor with his shoulder, Yuuri stiffened only slightly when the strong arm circled his upper half. "Man, more like boy," he tried to focus on Victor's face and not on Victor's fingers which were now trailing up and down on his arm, "I can't recall you every really growing up."

"Oh and you have?" Victor meant it as a joke, but it came out sounding ready for a fight. He mentally face-palmed himself for potentially breaking the mood that had been building since they slipped into the car.

"That's right, I have!" Yuuri crossed his arms, unfortunately for him, it pulled the fabric on his dress shirt, once again exposing the very edges of his nipples.

Victor knew Yuuri was anal retentive, but even for him a finely shaved chest was a bit shocking. Not that Victor was complaining. His eyes lingered on Yuuri's bare skin, briefly contemplating what it would taste like, and making the last few minutes of the car ride pass in a blur. The car pulled to the front of Victor's house, and he closed out the transaction with the driver as Yuuri slipped his shoes back on. Together they walked toward the house, Victor pulling Yuuri back to him when Yuuri went to veer off toward his car.

"What are you doing, Victor?" Yuuri's voice was slightly slurred now that they had stopped drinking and were away from the crowd, his anxiety levels had decreased letting the alcohol really set in. His head was fuzzy, but he wasn't completely wasted, and Yuuri was enjoying the happy medium between total drunkenness and absolute sobriety.

"Not letting you drive," he had a hand around Yuuri's waist, forcing himself not to think about how perfectly their bodies fit together. "I really don't feel like representing you as you would be the biggest pain in the ass client I have ever had." They bumped together as they made their way up the stairs. "I have the room, so why don't you stay. I'll let you borrow a hoodie." He knew after all their years of friendship that his clothes were Yuuri's weakness. Victor could always get him to shut up and stop arguing by offering up a soft hoodie or an oversized t-shirt. When it came to soft fabrics, blankets, sweatshirts, and socks, Yuuri was easily distracted almost like a cat looking for a place to snuggle. Although Yuuri was more curvy than small, Victor was still remarkably bigger than him. It was a charming sight to see his clothes swimming on Yuuri's smaller frame, and Victor found the mental image irresistible at the moment.

"Only if I can have clean boxers too," Yuuri was too busy ridding himself of his torturous footwear to see Victor's reaction to his request, "and foot rubs." When they had briefly been roommates, the exchanging of all clothes, including underwear had been a normal occurrence, along with Yuuri's demands for foot rubs after long days of lugging across campus. Even in his partially aroused, fractionally inebriated state, Yuuri didn't think twice about his demand of Victor's clothing or physical attention.

"So many damn demands!" As Victor spoke he reached into the hall closet and brought out a large sweatshirt bearing the name of their undergraduate alma mater. It was now impossible to hide the glimmer of lust sparkling in the heated teasing. Try as he might, Victor couldn't stop himself from continuing. "Do we have a deal?"

Yuuri moaned slightly, eager to get out of the uncomfortable confines of his dress clothes. "Yes, deal, but don't freak out, because I'm definitely not wearing anything under that thing." He was facing away from Victor when he said it, completely missing the pained expression which covered Victor's face.

"Boxers are upstairs," Victor shrugged out of his suit jacket and hung it in the closet, placing Yuuri's shoes and his on a small stepstool by the front door. "This way." Not letting himself think, he laced his fingers through Yuuri's leading their way up the stairs.

Maybe because the alcohol was sloshing around a bit in Yuuri's brain, maybe because he was hearing JJ's past accusations at the back of his mind all night, or maybe simply because Victor had a fabulous ass, but whatever the reason, Yuuri was thinking about kissing him again the entire way up the stairs. As they entered Victor's room, Yuuri's hand dropped to his side when Victor moved across the room. Hand on his hip, Yuuri contemplated his partner. Had Victor always moved so elegantly? The swift steps had been even and silent, taking Victor away from him with undeniable grace. A feeling deep inside of him stirred as he watched Victor's slight bend over the dresser, a waking beast ready to rage through Yuuri's self-imposed control.

When Victor spun around, boxers in hand, he was startled by Yuuri's facial expression. "What's wrong with your face?" He didn't want to fight with Yuuri, but Victor had no idea what else to do. Yuuri's cheeks were beautifully flushed, stunningly accented by Yuuri's deep brown eyes and stark black hair. Without the obstruction of Yuuri's glasses, Victor was able to focus on the delicate eyelashes, sweeping over Yuuri's cheeks with every blink. Feeling his own breath catching, Victor leaned back against the dresser, praying that Yuuri would speak.

"What's wrong with yours?" Yuuri retorted raising an eyebrow at him. "Never mind, there aren't enough hours left in this day to answer that." He giggled when Victor threw the boxers at him. Catching them in his left hand, Yuuri's nose caught the scent that was unmistakably Victor, a mixture of Downy detergent and Old Spice cologne. Desperate to give his needy body some reprieve, he wracked his brain for a new topic of conversation. "Hey," he looked down at his bare feet wiggling his toes to relieve some of the ache, "did you tell Chris it was ok to hit on me tonight?" It was the first thought that came to mind and Yuuri winced when Victor reacted.

"Son of a bitch, no," Victor busied himself unbuttoning his shirt, unaware that Yuuri was watching him do it. "What a bastard, what did you tell him?" _Fucking Chris_ , was the only coherent thought in Victor's brain. They had known Chris since their last year out of law school, each of them acting as a TA in different classes wherein he was a student. There had always been an interest in Yuuri, even if Yuuri didn't know about it, and Victor had always stealthily kept them apart. It wasn't until that exact moment that Victor began to question his own reasons for doing so.

"I introduced him to Masumi. He's fresh out of law school just like Chris, not looking for anything serious, and talks a lot. Perfect match for him." Yuuri's voice was dripping with discomfort, "did he tell you he was going to hit on me?" His eyes trailed over Victor's torso as he removed his shirt, leaving a sleeveless undershirt covering only part of his muscular upper half. Victor had really grown into his body in the past nine years.

"Honestly?" Victor snapped out the word as he looked at Yuuri, his heart beat quickening with the way his gaze was being returned with an accented biting of Yuuri's lower lip. "Why the hell would I do that? I tolerate Chris at best and I wouldn't want him anywhere near you." He watched as Yuuri dropped the sweatshirt and boxer shorts onto the dresser next to him. Victor's mind began to race as Yuuri slowly made his way across the room.

Yuuri's brain was a mixture of screaming at him to stop and telling him to cross the room as fast as possible. He settled for slow movement, gauging Victor's reaction as he moved. Watching Victor's eyes travel up and down his body didn't make Yuuri want to stop his pursuit. When he stood within inches of Victor, he cocked his head to the side looking straight into the fiery blue eyes. "Why do you care so much about who is near me?"

The challenge was in Yuuri's eyes, and he wouldn't have been able to resist it even if he tried. "Fuck it," Victor muttered and leaned into Yuuri, gathering him close while assaulting his mouth with Victor's own needy hunger. He was going to kiss Yuuri until he didn't have any fight left, until thoughts of all other guys were completely erased from his mind. He couldn't decide if it was the worst idea or the best idea he had ever had, but Victor wasn't going to pause to consider the issue any time soon.

Kissing him felt… different. Yuuri couldn't decide if it was the alcohol or undeniable attraction that he had been forcibly denying for nine years, but he felt as if he was spinning from Victor's demanding touch. The fireworks he had felt earlier were back, changing color from the alarmingly red to a thrilling parade of magnificent colors. Kissing someone had never been a big deal, but kissing Victor was making Yuuri's entire body explode with sensation. Experimenting with the limits, Yuuri ran his hands down the muscles of Victor's back, lightly looping his fingers into Victor's undershirt and slowly pulling it up.

The break in the kiss forced Victor to think for a minute, albeit not very clearly. He let Yuuri remove the undershirt, never losing eye contact with him as it pulled over Victor's head. "Yuuri," he said, thrills running through him when Yuuri visibly shivered, "are you sure…" He couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence. If Yuuri wanted to stop, he would be the first to douse himself in cold water. There would be a lot at stake if this was messy.

Snaking his hands behind Victor's head, Yuuri leaned into the warm bare chest, feeling the arousal shoot through him. "One night," Yuuri whispered into Victor's ear, "after that, we'll figure it out." Yuuri pulled back to look at him, smiling at his clouded eyes and messy hair. There was no denying it; Yuuri loved what he was doing to Victor's composure. "Deal?"

Victor wasn't sure what Yuuri meant, but Yuuri's skilled tongue and blinding smile were making Victor's own arousal impossible to control. Silently, Victor tugged the ends of Yuuri's dress shirt loose from his pants, yanking it off in on smooth pull. When Yuuri inhaled sharply, lips slightly parting, Victor decided he didn't care what it meant. "Deal," he murmured, bowing his head to envelope Yuuri's pert nipple, assaulting the aroused point with his alternating tongue and teeth.

Moaning loudly, Yuuri felt his knees go weak. Locking his arms on Victor's waist, Yuuri pulled him across the room. Breaking contact, Yuuri moved onto the bed, standing in the center. Staring straight into Victor's eyes, he reached over his own belt buckle, slowly dragging the belt from his waist and tossing it on the floor. With a sway of his hips, Yuuri unbuttoned his dress pants, shoving them off and kicking them to the floor. Deliberately, Yuuri stretched to the ceiling, placing his palms flat to the stucco surface, putting his entire flexible body on display for Victor. Drunk Yuuri was bold, and sober Yuuri would be embarrassed when he looked back on this moment, but the burn of Victor's eyes was enough to spur Yuuri on.

"Yup, you're gonna get it now," Victor found Yuuri's giggle incredibly sexy as he hopped up to pull Yuuri down from his pose to be smothered by Victor's body in the center of the bed.

Not one to relinquish control in any situation, Yuuri shoved Victor back, immediately crawling over top of him, grinning like a sly cat when Victor moaned. Setting to work to remove Victor's belt, encouraging Victor to lift his hips so Yuuri could remove his pants and boxers at the same time. Yuuri went to remove the absurdly printed socks, when Victor grabbed his wrist. "Leave them on," Yuuri gave him a weird look, "my feet get cold easily." Yuuri burst out of laughing, watching the smile twitch around Victor's kiss-swollen lips. "Don't make fun of me," Victor sat all the way up catching Yuuri under the armpits, "because I'll make you regret it." He flipped Yuuri onto his back, watching the challenge build in the enchanting brown eyes. If he thought fighting with Yuuri every day was ridiculous, fighting him for control in this situation was extremely hot.

"I wouldn't dream of making fun of you," the sly smile was back as Yuuri eased himself underneath Victor, "but I promise there won't be a cold part of you by the time I'm finished."

In what Victor would have assumed an impossible move, Yuuri slid underneath his body like butter, kissing him all the way down his torso, until he reached Victor's waist. Victor's voice hitched as he was awkwardly trapped over top of Yuuri, teasing Victor from underneath. Damnit, Yuuri was sneaky. Determined to one up him, Victor slid his body over Yuuri's and off the bed until he was kneeling on the ground with Yuuri spread out in front of him. With his own devious smile, he kissed the toned upper thigh, confidence skyrocketing when Yuuri shuddered under his lips. "You might be good, Katsuki," he kissed higher up the thick thigh, lifting it to rest over Victor's left shoulder, "but I'm going to make you admit that I'm better." Trailing his slim fingers, Victor traced patterns across Yuuri's abdomen making a torturous production of sliding off the tight briefs.

"Never," Yuuri whimpered as Victor slid a hand over his hardened length, Victor's other hand sliding to alternate teasing Yuuri's balls with fondling the rim of his puckering entrance. Yuuri arched up in pleasure, still restrained in his noises, making Victor want to shove him over the edge of climax. His mind was growing fuzzy with need, not helped by the glorious picture of Yuuri framed on his bedspread. It shouldn't have been a surprise, considering Yuuri's meticulous nature, but seeing the carefully sculpted pubic hair directly in front of him was playing games with Victor's head. Yuuri was wiggling, a reaction to Victor's slow teasing, and the combined effects were making Victor slowly go insane. Concentrating, Victor slowly stroked Yuuri's length, as he grabbed for the box of supplies discreetly stowed under the bed.

Fingers seizing a bottle of cinnamon lube from inside the box, Victor leaned up to replace his hand with his mouth over Yuuri's throbbing erection. Popping open the top of the bottle, Victor distracted Yuuri with the skills of his tongue while the lube dripped messily over his fingers. As the first finger slid into Yuuri's waiting entrance, Yuuri moaned, an incredibly sexy sound that surpassed Victor's wildest imagination. Without even being touched, Victor felt himself alarmingly close to falling over his own edge. Victor put all of his focus on drawing out Yuuri's orgasm, carefully sucking and licking while his fingers danced inside of Yuuri, carefully flirting with the bundle of nerves that was making Yuuri's thighs quiver. Continuing his relentless assault on all of Yuuri's senses, Victor felt an electric shudder rip through his own body as Yuuri's release flooded his throat. Yuuri's incredibly erotic whine filled the room as his orgasm overtook him, making his legs shake around Victor's head, while his rim squeezed the feeling from Victor's fingers.

Victor had turned him inside out in the matter of minutes, which was definitely something no one else had ever managed to do. Yuuri felt the spinning force of the orgasm throwing his brain around, his entire body singing with delirious notes of pleasure. Forcing himself to fight the urge to let Victor to continue to manipulate him into putty, Yuuri shoved his smug partner backwards onto the carpet, reserved to the fact that they probably wouldn't make it back on the bed.

"Um, we can…" Victor groaned, low and guttural, as Yuuri took his turn using his mouth to destroy Victor. He had planned to suggest relocating back to the bed, but Yuuri had stolen his ability to speak. All he could do was incoherently mutter and moan as Yuuri took complete control over him. At that moment, Yuuri could have asked him for anything and he would have given it to him. The slow drag of Yuuri's tongue, expertly mixed with the sucking bob of Yuuri's mouth had Victor unraveling into incoherent babbles. It was hot and wet, and Victor was positive he was going to die before he reached climax. Groaning, Victor slid a hand into Yuuri's hair feeling the first hints of orgasm building in his stomach. His head crashed back against the carpet when Yuuri released him. Victor's body jerked as Yuuri deliberately slid over top of him.

"Can I trust you?" Yuuri felt a rush a pleasure as he pressed down onto Victor. He wanted to tear Victor apart, but his body had another aching need, one that could only be filled by Victor. As the potential raced through him, Yuuri could feel his own erection regaining interest in the situation. He squirmed against Victor, impatiently waiting for an answer.

"What?" Victor was unable to form rational thoughts at the moment.

"Can I trust you?" Yuuri was watching him closely, his mind reeling with the way Victor had come undone from his touch.

Victor laced his fingers into Yuuri's disheveled black hair, pulling Yuuri down to him. Right before he crashed their lips together, he whispered, "always," knowing it was a reference to one of Yuuri's favorite books. He kissed Yuuri slowly, every part of him aching with the need to release, but not ready for it to be over. Yuuri leaned into his ear, heavy breathing turning Victor on even more.

"Good," he whispered. Sitting up, Yuuri lowered himself onto Victor, making both of them let obscene noises escape into the room. Yuuri knew exactly what he would need to get off again, and surveying Victor's full-body flush and quirking hips, Yuuri determined that there wouldn't be much time to work with. Leaning back to give Victor a full view of his body, Yuuri began to move, working to keep himself upright and bouncing as his body quaked with impending orgasm.

Watching Yuuri wasn't helping him hold on, but he couldn't tear his eyes away. The overly controlled, organized, and generally irritating main man in his life was currently riding Victor into oblivion, his hair a disaster over his forehead, sweat glistening over Yuuri's well-toned torso. Chaos and control colliding above him might have been the single sexiest thing Victor had ever seen. Wrapping his hand around Yuuri's dick, Victor provided the necessary friction to send Yuuri flying over the edge again, cascades of white rushing over Victor's hand and splattering across both bare chests. Knowing he would be only a few seconds behind, Victor moved Yuuri off of him, grabbing his discarded undershirt to capture his release.

Although Yuuri felt completely wrecked, his body heaving from the rapid succession orgasms and the lingering blur of alcohol, he leaned forward and yanked the undershirt from Victor's hand, throwing it across the room. He caught every ounce of Victor's spilled release in his mouth, swallowing all of it as Victor hissed his shock and appreciation in the form of Yuuri's name. Feeling Victor soften, Yuuri collapsed backwards onto the carpet, letting his arm linger in soft grazing touches against Victor's.

"Holy fucking shit, Katsuki," Victor couldn't believe he could even talk. He had had plenty of sex in his lifetime, but that had been the kind of sex that his body would never forget.

"It was alright," Yuuri was grinning with an eyebrow raised, "practice makes perfect, you know." He laughed when Victor whistled through his teeth.

He turned his head to look at Yuuri. "Are you saying I need more practice? I have empirical evidence that I was pretty damn successful." Victor ran a hand up Yuuri's stomach, leaving a trail of messy wetness all the way up to Yuuri's collarbone, and making Yuuri shiver under the touch.

"Maybe I'm going to lie and say you need practice," Yuuri curled onto Victor's side, reeling a bit from Victor's careful consideration of the naked contact, "just so you'll be up for this again sometime."

"Damn dirty liar," Victor smiled, crushing a hard kiss into Yuuri's temple. Maybe tomorrow this will have been a mistake, but if he kept Yuuri there and in the moment with him, maybe he could keep Yuuri from thinking about it.

"More like, freezing cold liar," Yuuri shook against him, which didn't help Victor want to let him go, "any chance I can have the hoodie now?" The way Yuuri was pouting down at him made Victor immediately analyze his own ability to go for a round two.

"Nope, I'll keep you plenty warm tonight, I promise," he nuzzled into Yuuri's neck, biting the smooth skin to stifle the potential argument, letting himself enjoy the taste of Yuuri slowly this time.

Pushing off of Victor, Yuuri stood up, suddenly very aware of his own stickiness and the tastes mingling in his mouth. "Sorry, I have to…" there was no way it was going to sound sexy, "clean up." He blushed slightly and walked to the bathroom, knowing without looking that Victor was staring at his ass the whole time. Yuuri needed a quick shower and a gallon of mouthwash as the knowledge of his ill-advised actions settled into his brain. Slipping from the room, he padded to Victor's bathroom in search of cleanliness.

It took most of Victor's remaining strength to lift his satiated body from the floor. Locating his tossed undershirt, Victor swiped it over his chest, groin and hands, flinging it into his hamper with a quick flick of his wrist. A glance at his thighs had him bracing himself on the dresser, spotting the sheer number of small hickeys covering the area. He had barely registered Yuuri sucking them onto his skin, making Victor regret not paying more attention.

Flicking the covers back on the bed, Victor crawled in, uncaring about his own nudity. The thought of curling around Yuuri all night, naked skin pressed together, was making his stomach flutter. For a brief moment, Victor worried that Yuuri would slip away into the guestroom, but he shoved the fear away, deciding to instead play back the events of the last hour. Finding his smile uncontained and elated, Victor snuggled into his pillow. One night wasn't going to cut it, and Victor was going to make sure Yuuri knew that.

When Yuuri returned to the bedroom, Victor was tucked under the covers smiling in a post-orgasmic haze. Snagging the clean boxers Yuuri had previously discarded, he slipped them on before crawling under the covers of the bed. He wasn't surprised to find Victor's naked skin waiting for him, minus his feet which were still covered in the socks that Victor had refused to remove. Easing down, Yuuri let his back be pulled flush to Victor's chest, calming himself as Victor wrapped his long arm over Yuuri's waist. He wasn't a huge fan of cuddling, but he could hear Victor humming in what seemed to be happiness, so he let it go.

"You smell like mint," Victor ran his nose over the back of Yuuri's neck, smelling his soap and toothpaste mixed on Yuuri's body.

"Brushed my teeth with one of your extras," Yuuri shifted slightly to reveal wide eyes, "mistakes were made." He laughed when Victor did, glad that neither of them were going to push the discussion any further.

The soft skin of Yuuri's stomach felt glorious under Victor's fingertips and the press of Yuuri's ass against his groin had Victor sighing in contentment. For a brief moment, Victor had contemplated stirring things back up, but found it was so luxuriously comforting to feel Yuuri pulled against him that the temptation to fall into dreamland became almost instant. Sighing into Yuuri's back, Victor let his heavy eyelids drop close, steady breathing matching that of his cuddle buddy.

* * *

Yuuri's eyes fluttered open, taking a second to register where he was, feeling the weight of the arm draped possessively over his waist. Sometime in his sleep, Yuuri had shifted to lay cheek down on Victor's chest. The position was so comfortable, Yuuri found himself without the motivation to move.

His mind woke faster than his body, alerting him to the two options currently on the table. Yuuri could stay, taking a chance that the morning wouldn't be awkward and find out what it would feel like to be with Victor in the daylight, not as a friend, but as a post-drunken-sex lover. Or as both. Or as whatever they would be now.

Or he could leave.

Judging the state of his head, relieved to find it wasn't overwhelming despite the amount of alcohol he had consumed, Yuuri twisted to survey the still darkness through the panoramic window. He could look around the room without dizzying pain which felt like a win, but the anxiety raging inside of him was definitely a loss. Eyes aching from briefly sleeping in his contacts, Yuuri stared into Victor's serenely sleep-slacked face, knowing that a decision had to be made. And fast.

* * *

 **END NOTES:**

 **Yes, there was probably some wincing when JJ kissed Yuuri. Had to be done, won't happen again, I promise!**

 **Counsel = attorney = lawyer (they are all the same thing)**

 **Deposition = a boring meeting with multiple attorneys and a court reporter (who types out the entire conversation) where one attorney asks either the Plaintiff or the Defendant questions. These types of meetings are tortuous and long. (If you have additional questions, please let me know!)**

 **Also, this is set in America, because frankly, I only know how the law works here.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Yuuri does what everyone expects. They are both a pining, confused mess. I can't write angst without humor, so here we go.**

 **Flashbacks are in italics :)**

* * *

The room was slowly filling with light as the curtains blew in the slight breeze. The pillow was cool on his cheek, and he slowly gained consciousness, a smile spreading on his face as reality of the night before trickled into his waking mind. Feeling weight on the bed behind him, he shifted, eyes still closed and heart still hopeful.

Turning blindly into the warm body, Victor snuggled close, rubbing his face into it. When he felt coarse hair against his cheek instead of warm skin, he cautiously opened one eye. He was greeted by a large tongue licking his face. "Ah, man, Makkachin!" he opened both eyes to see his large poodle panting in his face. Scratching his dog's head, he sat up reaching for his cell phone. A text from his dog walker told him that Makkachin was dropped off twenty minutes ago. Victor laid back, happy with his own forethought to schedule a Friday overnight playdate for his dog with his second favorite dog buddy.

Then it hit him.

Glancing over Makkachin's haphazardly scattered body, Victor sighed at the empty bed occupied now only by him and his loyal furry best friend. Shoving away the covers, he kicked his feet down not bothering to get dressed. He wanted Yuuri to at least be in the guest room, his heart already knowing that this wouldn't be the case even as he walked to the window. The car was missing from his driveway, a sight that made his stomach sink as he pressed his forehead on the glass.

It made sense, really. They had been on the wrong side of drunk, making decisions that maybe they shouldn't have.

But Yuuri had come back to sleep with him.

Victor had been falsely hopeful that Yuuri's willingness to snuggle next to him was sign of something more. That hope felt small and ridiculous now as Victor stared down at his empty driveway, desperately opening and closing his eyes wishing that the deep blue of Yuuri's car would blur back into existence. Leaning now with both arms, Victor felt the wetness leaking onto his cheeks, feeling the bump of Makkachin against his legs.

Overwhelmed with his own jumble of emotions, Victor sank to the ground, gathering his dog close and dissolving into a puddle of uncertainty and doubt.

* * *

Yuuri's eyes opened a few hours later, staring at his own ceiling. He was a coward. There was no other way to describe him. Slipping away before Victor could miss him was pathetic and immature; the panic of how comfortable he was in Victor's arms rising up to clench at his chest once again. Idly stroking Vicchan's head as the fluffy toy puddle nuzzled his face, Yuuri attempted to rationalize his decision.

He was happy, really happy with life. He was damn good at his job, had great friends in Phichit, Seung-gil, and Victor, and generally enjoyed life on a daily basis. In no way did Yuuri need a man to make him feel complete. It was a ridiculous notion put forth by their over-romanticized society. Yet, and he felt the panic again escalating, _complete_ was the most prominent word to describe the feeling of being in Victor's arms.

So Yuuri had run, slipping quietly from the room and out of Victor's house without ever disturbing him. Life was great as it was, and he wasn't going to monkey that up for anyone, not even the man who could easily be the love of Yuuri's life. Groaning with the realization of his last thought, Yuuri buried his face in his pillow and let the memories of the night wash over him in a bath of guilt.

Every moment had been stolen from a bad romantic comedy. The light-hearted banter, the first kiss that had made the floor collapse beneath Yuuri's feet and then the sex. _Oh God, the sex_ , Yuuri thought, body shifting in reaction to the instant recall of how incredible it had been. There was sex and then there was the indescribable way Victor had demolished Yuuri's sanity through physical pleasure. His heart rate peaked as Yuuri frantically shoved the reminiscence away from the front of his mind, begging his body to let him have some peace.

Pushing up, he scooped up Vicchan to head for his living room. Giggles filled the empty space as Vicchan did his best to worm between Yuuri's soft neck and the even softer fabric of the red sweatshirt he was sporting. Even his poodle's cuddles couldn't relieve his stress, as Yuuri leaned into the tiny snuggling body.

Vicchan had been a Christmas present from Victor, the same year that Yuuri had gifted Victor the giant ball of fluff that was Makkachin. They had both been excited to surprise the other, ending in hysterical laughter at the identical presents. Victor had, of course, named Yuuri's present after himself, and Yuuri had never had the heart to change it. As the furry Vicchan settled against Yuuri's chest, he tried to shove away the lingering thoughts of cuddling the human version. Swallowing back the lump in his throat, Yuuri moved out of his bedroom, seeking caffeinated salvation from his thoughts.

Plodding into the kitchen, Yuuri grabbed his glasses from beside the coffee maker, putting to use the necessary tools to brew a pot of coffee. Idly, his fingers tapped on the counter, waiting for the familiar sounds of caffeinated goodness preparing for his consumption. Thoughts invaded his brain again, forcing him back to all of the cringe worthy parts of the day before.

The mental picture of him stretching to the ceiling in the middle of Victor's bed made him wince, as did the reoccurring thought that he had failed to think through the actions that lead him to practically go ass-to-mouth with himself. Shaking his head, he refocused on the dripping coffee.

Unfortunately, his blatant denial of the occurrences of the night, left room for remembering JJ's brief return to his life. Groaning, Yuuri banged his head into the nearest kitchen cabinet. How he had once again ended up in JJ's embrace was beyond him. The thought made his mouth twist into an ugly grimace, his head banging hard against the wood and making Vicchan bark loudly at him in response. It was almost as perplexing as the week he had spent dating JJ, which his devious mind decided he now needed to overanalyze.

He hadn't even meant to date JJ. Letting the groan escape, Yuuri banged his head again realizing it was another decision brought around by Victor. Well, technically, by Victor's absence. If Victor hadn't been so wrapped up in whatever guy-flavor-of-the-month he was into, maybe he would have shown up that night and Yuuri wouldn't have been alone at the bar. Maybe if Victor was there, Yuuri wouldn't have agreed with Sara to trade his bar tab for his class notes, taking pity on the barmaid as she often fell asleep in class after working the two jobs she needed to pay for law school. If Victor had shown up that night, instead of ditching Yuuri for his newest boyfriend (a term Victor used much too lightly in Yuuri's opinion), Yuuri wouldn't have ended up playing a game of pool against JJ. He certainly wouldn't have ended up making out with JJ and agreeing to another date.

If Victor had showed up that _one_ night, Yuuri wouldn't have spent a whirlwind week meeting all of JJ's friends and avoiding his own. And he certainly wouldn't have dragged JJ to Phichit's birthday party, straight into the belly of the beast that was Yuuri's group of friends. It was a night Yuuri wouldn't forget, and his brain was determined to force him back through the most embarrassing portions of it.

 _The music was loud by the time they reached the bar, Yuuri hesitantly letting JJ keep their hands intertwined as they pushed into the dim lit building, the sounds of terrible karaoke wavering over them. On stage, Phichit was serenading Seung-gil, who was an amusing mix of humiliated and hopelessly in love. Seated in a rowdy group to the left, were the rest of his friends, including Victor who had his arm slung over a mildly familiar pair of shoulders. A pair of shoulders that would probably be different within the week, Yuuri thought bitterly, wrapping his hand tighter into JJ's. Dragging his date forward, Yuuri marched toward the group, yelping slightly when Phichit acknowledged him mid-song._

 _It might have been his imagination, but Victor's smile seemed to disappear before reappearing although it no longer reached his eyes. Yuuri introduced JJ to the group as a whole, startling when Victor stood to shake JJ's hand. The wince was not subtle as JJ withdrew his grasp from Victor's, moving the arm to pull Yuuri into JJ's side. There were odd vibes tremoring between JJ and his best friend, and Yuuri automatically looked to Phichit for help. When Phichit only laughed from his place on stage, Yuuri sighed into a chair, hoping whatever weirdness would vanish as the night went on._

 _Instead it got worse. JJ was inherently loud and boisterous, and with every laugh his stories received, Victor had a story to tell of his own. They leaned over Yuuri, in a bizarre challenge until JJ excused himself to go to the bathroom. Pushing back from his chair, Yuuri crossed the room to the bar, jumping when an arm slammed down over his shoulders. Peering up, Yuuri cocked an eyebrow at Victor in silent question._

 _"_ _Your boyfriend seems…" Victor tapped his finger against his lips as if looking for a word, "like a real asshole." He finished with a flourish, a sarcastic smile winking at the edges of his lips._

 _"_ _Not my boyfriend," Yuuri said, making no effort to remove Victor's arm from his body. "Only you throw that word around like it's a ten-cent-hooker," Yuuri ignored Victor's laughter, thanking Sara for his drink before turning to face Victor head on. "For some people it takes longer to establish those labels than others. For some people it means something." He saw a brief flash of hurt in Victor's eyes, before feeling his elbows wrapped with Victor's strong fingers._

 _"_ _I don't like the guy, Yuuri," the way Victor said his name, an affectionate accented drawl, made Yuuri take a step closer. "Get rid of him. He isn't good enough for you." Yuuri was searching Victor's face for the joke, still trapped by the demanding grip on his arms when a throat cleared behind Victor's head. Glancing around his best friend, Yuuri saw a semi-furious JJ. Shaking Victor off, Yuuri reached around to grab JJ's hand._

 _Before he could speak, Yuuri was being dragged outside, barely slipping his drink on the bar without spilling it. The grip on his hand was unbearable and as soon as they broke the plane of the door, Yuuri shook it free. "What in the-" His protest was cut short by the rough kiss, painfully assaulting his lips until Yuuri pushed free. Wiping his mouth, Yuuri stared at JJ._

 _"_ _So, what..." JJ stepped back, flailing an arm, "why am I here? To make that guy jealous? Is that it?"_

 _Yuuri stood silent, in shock. Shaking his head, Yuuri ran a hand through his hair. "Victor isn't jealous."_

 _"_ _There is a group of fifteen guys in there Yuuri and you didn't even hesitate to point out the exact one I'm talking about." JJ folded his arms over his chest, glaring at Yuuri from a mere two feet away._

 _Silence hung around them, reducing their world to two people as the realization hit Yuuri hard. "That's just who I was talking to, I assumed..." Yuuri trailed off._

 _"_ _You're in love with him," JJ was yelling again, making Yuuri recoil. "You're in love with him and you are just using me. No wonder you wouldn't have sex with me. How could you? Unless you thought about him the whole time!"_

 _"_ _Don't be ridiculous!" It was Yuuri's turn to shout. "It's been a week! I wouldn't sleep with anyone that fast! It doesn't mean that I'm… you know… with… you know," Yuuri hung his head as JJ scoffed._

 _"_ _You can't even say the words!" JJ turned on his heel to walk away. "You're an asshole, Yuuri Katsuki. An asshole who doesn't know what he wants, or you do know and instead you have decided to toy with other people." With that, JJ was gone, leaving Yuuri to gawk at his retreating back._

Those were the last words he had heard JJ speak until the dickhead had shown up in Yuuri's office and decided it was appropriate to throw kisses around. Forehead braced on the cabinet, Yuuri found other thoughts beginning to trickle in. Why would JJ have called Victor to be his attorney? Victor Nikiforov wasn't a common name, especially when the firm was also attached to Yuuri's last name. There was no way JJ didn't recognize the name. So why…

Yuuri's spiraling thoughts were interrupted by the click of his coffee machine, signaling the completion of the brewing process. He had spent the entire ten minutes stewing in his own awkwardness, and wanted nothing more than to drown out the circular considerations with a gallon of coffee and copious amounts of mindless television.

Finally able to move the pot, Yuuri filled his favorite mug to the brim, scooping Vicchan from the floor to move back into his living room. His stomach was too tied up in knots to eat, so he disregarded the idea of food as he crashed onto the plush red couch. He was determined to stop thinking about JJ, hopefully forever, and he was even more determined to ignore any hints of thoughts about his Friday night.

Remote in one hand, coffee in the other and a happily snuggling Vicchan in his lap, Yuuri pulled his knees to his chest, flipping on his large television. He paused to send his sister a thank you text for letting Vicchan out the night before, and set the phone aside to choose a binge-worthy show. As the opening scene began to play, Yuuri balanced Vicchan in his tucked lap, coffee mug balanced on his knee, retrieving his phone to capture the moment. Yuuri giggled at the sight of his hidden face under the red hood, making the irrational decision to post a rare picture to his barely used Instagram. Using the hashtag "Perfect Saturday," Yuuri hit the post button and tossed his phone on the couch, prepared to wash his thoughts away with fictional drama.

* * *

Victor had spent the rest of his sleepless morning staring at his phone willing it to ring. He wasn't sure if he should text Yuuri, or even call him, feeling lost without a clue of what to do. If it had been anyone else acting as his Friday night lover, Victor would have shown up at Yuuri's house, bribing his best friend with coffee and donuts to listen to Victor whine pathetically about his perfect night with the perfect person. Unfortunately, it wasn't just anyone. This time it was Yuuri and Victor was left without his main source of advice.

Yuuri was his go-to on practically any subject matter, which meant Victor was woefully without counsel on this particular issue. He had sought Yuuri's guidance on everything from school, to mortgage fees, to furniture choices, to romantic decisions. Yuuri had always patiently broken down each problem, helping Victor reach a logical solution. Now, that help was nowhere to be found, and it was proving impossible for Victor to simply reach out to Yuuri directly, the fear of being shoved away becoming more debilitating with each minute.

Instead, Victor paced his hallway, desperately trying to recall all of Yuuri's past advice. He remembered when he had broken up with David, Yuuri had told him to find someone more selfless than the over-demanding drama queen that was David Lee. When he had been dumped by Stan Stevenson, Yuuri had told Victor to find someone who would make Victor laugh, instead of making him cry all the time. And when Victor had been ghosted by Leif Thompson, Yuuri had emphasized that Victor deserved someone that supported him and wanted to help him succeed.

As the advice cycled through his head, Victor found himself once again sprawled on his floor, this time occupying the slender span of his upstairs hallway. Yuuri had made him homemade chicken soup when Victor had the flu before finals, and convinced their hardest professor to allow Victor to take the exam three days late. It had been Yuuri that had suggested drunken Mario Kart to cheer post-Stan Victor up, purposefully driving into walls and cursing out the cloud-riding creature to make Victor laugh hysterically. Through the LSATS, the bar exam, and every single class, Yuuri had kept Victor organized and motivated, pushing him to excel when Victor wanted to give up.

Throwing his entire body dramatically over the floor, Victor let the weight of these memories crush him. Yuuri had been giving him advice, and then acting as living proof of every piece of it. Only a glowing red sign that said "it's me you are looking for, you moron" would have been more obvious. Victor wanted to die of ignorant shame as he slapped a painful hand to his forehead.

For the hundredth time that morning, Victor lifted his phone to stare at the screen. Noting the Instagram notification, he swiped it open, mindlessly opening his Instagram app as his brain short-circuited with too much information. "Katsuki_Yuuri posted for the first time in a while," stated the notification as if was no big thing. He stared at the first picture on his feed for a few minutes, a smile slowly spreading on his face.

His red hoodie. Yuuri might have slipped out in the night, and maybe neither of them were really brave enough to face the morning after; however, there Yuuri was, cuddling his tiny brown dog named for _Victor_ with the distinct red of _Victor's_ hoodie covering his head. Whether it was intentional or not, the hope Victor had tried to suppress resurfaced faster than a diver running out of oxygen.

* * *

The phone pinged next to Yuuri's thigh and he pulled his eyes off the television to check the notification. "Nice hoodie, thief," read Victor's comment, a number of winking smiley faces appearing after the words. Smiling in spite of himself, Yuuri locked his phone, settling back into the couch cushions with an exaggerated sigh.

* * *

Saturday had quite possibly been the longest day of Victor's young life, dragging into the wee hours as he had struggled to fall asleep with the battle of his feelings still raging inside of him. He had scrolled through every text message Yuuri had sent him in the last months, looking at the biting comments in a completely different way. What if Yuuri wasn't fighting with him? What if Yuuri was _flirting_ with him? The possibility was too tempting, leaving Victor awake in his bed for far too many hours, and his dick sore from too many rounds of actively reliving the thoughts of his night with Yuuri. It had been months since Victor had felt the need to jerk off, but he had done so six times throughout Saturday, Yuuri being the star of every fantasy.

Sunday had finally dawned, bright and hot, forcing Victor from his bed to fulfill his commitment to Phichit. Every Sunday of spring and summer they watched baseball together and every fall and winter they watched football. Other sports invaded their time, especially during the Olympics when they couldn't get enough of swimming and figure skating, but their standing Sunday plans never wavered. Even with Seung-gil's parents in town, Victor knew his presence would be expected, so he hauled himself into the shower and then out into the summer heat.

Sprawling on a leather recliner, Victor idly sipped his beer as he vaguely monitored the game playing across Phichit's insanely large television. Phichit was equally as sprawled on the matching recliner, grunting in the general direction of the game as he downed his third beer. Seung-gil's father had vacated the couch, headed in search of snacks in the kitchen where Seung-gil and his mother were busy preparing dinner.

"This game sucks," Phichit threw out, obviously grumpily into the third day of having his house invaded by his in-laws. Although Seung-gil was very happy and appreciative that his parents were there, Phichit was very excited to have the excuse to get back to the office on Monday morning, a sentiment he had whispered to Victor as soon as Victor had arrived. Together, they had walked around the parameter of Phichit's house, pretending to examine the wilting gardens as Phichit vented about his house guests. Victor had laughed at Phichit's rantings, letting them delay Victor's own nervous news.

Grunting in response to Phichit's statement, Victor glanced toward the kitchen, verifying that the whole of the Lee family was preoccupied. Letting his eyes fall on the mound of Makkachin and Phichit's husky, curled together in an exhausted pile, he tried to get up the courage to tell Phichit the one thing he had been avoiding all day. Turning slightly to look at the side of his best friend's face, Victor narrowed his eyes. "I slept with Yuuri."

Beer sputtered from Phichit's mouth in a similar manner to a cartoon character doing a spit take. "Um, come again?!" Phichit was sitting up, jaw slack wiping the beer off his shirt while staring at Victor.

Chuckling, Victor sat back, "wasn't it your suggestion to bang one out?" He heard Phichit grumble and slowly sipped his beer.

"I mean," Phichit wiped the drops of beer out of his slight stubble, "yes, technically that was my idea, but I never thought you would go through with it." Setting his beer down, he moved onto the couch closer to Victor's seat. "And?"

"And what?" Victor kept his eyes on the TV. He could hear the frustrated muttering coming from the couch and couldn't help feeling amused. Phichit spent so much time teasing him about his spats with Yuuri, it was nice to finally have the upper hand on the torture.

"And what now? Also, was it good or weird? Fill me in here!" Phichit punched his friend on the shoulder, causing Victor's beer to slightly spill on his own shirt.

"I don't know." Victor ran a hand idly down his shirt contemplating Phichit's questions. Was it good? Certainly the best he had ever had, although he would hesitate to say that part out loud. What happens next? He had no idea. He hadn't spoken to Yuuri since they fell asleep together in his bed. Victor had drafted multiple messages to his best friend turned lover over the past two days, but had erased every one of them. Yuuri was at his parents' house today, the same as every Sunday, which meant his phone would be off and other than the one post yesterday all of Yuuri's social media had remained quiet. All Victor had managed to sort out for himself was that Yuuri was probably _it_ for him, and he had no idea what to do about it.

"The shit?!" Phichit sat back on the couch, slapping his forehead with his hand. "Dude, I didn't mean have sex with him and then become stupid. Well... more stupid," Phichit dramatically rolled his eyes as Victor grumbled his disagreement. "I thought it would snap things into focus for you." Victor felt the eyes zero in on his face as he determinedly glared at the terrible version of baseball being played on the big screen. Phichit mumbled something and then gasped. "Wait a minute," an accusing finger appeared in Victor's periphery vision, " _you know_. Damn, you know you are in love with him."

Victor sat quietly, eyes still on the television. Slowly he nodded his head without speaking.

"Well, then we are back to, and now what?" Phichit leaned back to grab his beer, swigging heavily from it, "you know, you have been in love with him from the first time you met him. I know, I have heard the story." Phichit's all-knowing smirk turned irritated as his father-in-law walked into the room and took over the other recliner. He shot Victor an irritated look that conveyed that the conversation was far from over.

Settling back into his chair, Victor let Phichit's words sink in. He hadn't known Phichit when he officially first met Yuuri, but the story had been retold by Seung-gil so many times that Phichit had taken to retelling it himself. It wasn't until it ran through his mind, with the Phichit filter firmly in place, that Victor really felt the second-hand embarrassment seep in.

 _Finals had officially dragged Victor to his breaking point, causing him to pass out with gum still firmly pressed between his locked jaw, only to wake to find the same gum waded in his long hair. In a harsh and reactionary decision, Victor had sliced his ponytail from his head, trekking with his backpack in tow to the nearest salon to repair his hasty work. With his head filled with regret, but lighter in hair, Victor pushed his grouchy way into the library searching for a table among the crowded room._

 _A vaguely familiar head of black hair was hunched over a stack of books, hand flying over a lined pad making careful but quick notes. The boy's head bobbed, in time with whatever music was pumping through his oversized headphones. Victor found himself mesmerized by the motions, the rhythmic head bobbing combined with the skillful note taking creating a fascinating picture._

 _"_ _Nice hair. Go say hi, it is creepy when you stare at people."_

 _The voice at his shoulder made Victor jump, almost tripping on the shoelace of his tennis shoe as he twisted around to find his roommate calmly examining him. "Hey, Seung-gil," Victor tried to sound like he hadn't just been lusting after some random stranger in the library, "are you studying somewhere? I need to sit…" Victor's voice trailed off as he watched the dark-haired boy pull off his glasses and lean back to stretch. Next to Victor, Seung-gil chuckled._

 _"_ _I think you'll like the answer to that question." Pushing Victor's shoulder, Seung-gil shoved him until they reached the table._

 _Brown eyes peered up at Victor, and he felt a twist in his stomach. Of course he was familiar._

 _Snapping his headphones onto his neck, Yuuri frowned at Seung-gil. "You know this idiot? What happened to your hair?" The second portion of the questions was aimed directly at Victor._

 _Seung-gil shrugged, his quiet demeanor barely giving away his amusement. "This is my roommate, Victor. How do you know he is an idiot?"_

 _Victor tossed his bag on the ground, flopping into the seat directly next to Yuuri, pretending to be undaunted by the teasing, but quietly quaking as he entered Yuuri's space. "Because he handed my ass to me in a debate yesterday in sociology," Victor grinned when Yuuri chortled. "Excellent points by the way, even though your delivery was cocky and yet ill-constructed." Victor liked the way Yuuri bristled with the challenge._

 _"_ _Maybe it only sounded ill-constructed because it was too much for you to comprehend. Or maybe all your hair was covering your ears."_

 _Yuuri's tone was tauntingly appealing and Victor twisted to face him. "Let's test your hair hypothesis. Wanna go another round?" Victor raised his eyebrow in challenge, seeing the intrigue spark on Yuuri's face._

 _"_ _Anytime," Yuuri quipped back, "I love easy wins."_

 _Victor felt the laughter bubble over as he settled in next to Yuuri, both of them placing earphones in place, but exchanging smirking glances as they did so._

It took considerable effort not to groan as Victor let the entire memory reel play out in his mind. The banter had started before they even knew each other, battling in class over every subject, even when Yuuri was only playing devil's advocate to challenge Victor on his arguments. Their competitive nature had continued into law school, often leaving other students in their verbal dust as they point, counter-pointed each other through every subject.

And it wasn't just in class that they found themselves in the middle of sparing. Every subject could be debated, every conversation was highlighted with the bob of their perfect oral ping pong. No one had ever tested Victor the way Yuuri did, and in turn, no one had ever been such a constant source of inspiration. Yuuri forced Victor to be at his best all the time.

Victor was trapped with his own silent realizations, the resounding knowledge that he was in love with Yuuri Katsuki pounding at him to be released into the world. He hadn't wanted to cancel on his plans with Phichit for Sunday sports viewing, a long-standing tradition in their friendship, but he found himself longing for it to be the two of them. It was almost worse to be stuck in a room, being drowned by his own thoughts, where his friend sat a few feet away and unable to listen to Victor rant. The alternative, slowly driving himself mad by wandering through his own house, sounded even more unbearable to Victor's aching heart.

Resolved to remain quiet, letting the sands of his sanity slip away through the useless sieve of his mind, Victor stared hard at the TV willing himself to momentarily forget the conundrum that was the best and the worst realization of his entire life.

* * *

Yuuri set the dishes down on the dinner table, calling out to his older sister. She was five years older than him, and unlike Yuuri she had not immediately pursued a career, instead continuing to help run their family's business. Mari was comfortable living at home, hanging with their parents, and generally living a life dictated by them. As if to hammer in the stark comparison between the two, Mari came lumbering down the stairs in sweats and t-shirt, while Yuuri adjusted his button down shirt over his jeans. If he had arrived to dinner wearing sweats, his mom would have sent him home to change. Mari, however, didn't even appear to have showered that day.

Closing his eyes briefly to push down the frustration, Yuuri restarted his placement of dishes without focusing on the task at hand. A glance at the table had him retrieving an extra dish and returning to the kitchen with it. "Mom, you handed me an extra one." Yuuri stated without emotion. His brows furrowed when his cheerful mother took the plate, added silverware on top of it and pushed it back toward the dining room.

"No I didn't, sweetie," his mom's voice had a sing-song tone to it which immediately alerted Yuuri to the fact that he didn't want to hear the rest of the sentence, "we are expecting company this evening. Now finish setting the table and run a comb through your hair. I would like you to wear it back for dinner."

Perplexed, Yuuri set out the additional plate and all of the silverware, grunting at Mari as she nudged his side. When he didn't inquire further, Mari nudged him again flicking her eyes down to the extra place setting. "Mom is playing match maker again."

Yuuri sighed. His mom had become increasingly worried about her children's continual lack in the serious romantic partner department. Every Sunday they had dinner together and every Sunday for the last two months, there had been a new person at the table, handpicked by their mother as a potential suitor. She was the most wonderful woman in the world, and Yuuri adored her, but in light of the events of the weekend, and Victor's complete lack of contact for almost forty-eight hours, Yuuri was positive he couldn't handle one more person. Nervously wringing his hands, Yuuri finally glanced at Mari. "You or me?"

Mari snorted, shaking her head. "I think mom has given up on me. This time, she is definitely gunning for you." Mari slapped him on the back, and Yuuri swung his hand out, narrowly missing his sister's shoulder as their mother shuffled into the room.

"Yuuri! What are you doing?!"

Yuuri's shoulders sagged as he took the blame for the jointly initiated contact. There was no use arguing it, he had learned long ago that Mari was the golden child and it was easier to accept the blame than to rage against the injustice. "Sorry, mom," he muttered as he walked out of the room and toward the staircase leading to the upstairs bathroom.

"Brush your teeth again and make sure you run a comb through your hair!"

Yuuri mocked his mother's words as he closed the bathroom door examining his face in the mirror. Yuuri had not slept well the night before, a combination of too much television and caffeine and not enough movement. And one other thing.

The cold water splashed from the palms of his hands onto his exhausted face as he tried to shake Victor from his brain. Countless times yesterday and throughout the night he had found his mind returning to Victor's bedroom. Yuuri enjoyed sex and had a reasonable number of partners over the years, but something had been notably different with Victor. He had attempted to reason it away, yearning to convince himself that it was merely the explosion of almost a decade of offhandedly wondering about Victor's sexual prowess. His heart knew that the reasoning was built on a foundation of crappy logic. His body knew he was full of shit. His brain, however, was anxious to continue the long strand of denial that he was weaving together into a full-fledged blanket. Jumping when the door banged open, Yuuri eyed Mari suspiciously.

"You know," Mari crossed behind him, cracking a window before lighting a cigarette, "you could finally decide to date Victor and be done with all of this. Mom and Dad love him." She was too busy flicking ash out of the window to see Yuuri wince.

His parents did love Victor. Everyone loved Victor. It was Yuuri who always left people confused and a little uncomfortable. This is why he knew without a shadow of a doubt that Victor was regretting their indiscretion on Friday night. Victor always agonized over calling someone he was interested in, and caved in to his own pressures, reaching out to potential love interests far earlier than Yuuri thought appropriate. When Yuuri's phone had gone without notification of text or call for two whole days, he had resolved himself to the knowledge that he wasn't worth Victor's obsessive pining. He had watched Victor pine over some absolute losers, and Yuuri was not above admitting to himself that he felt a little stung by Victor's lack of interest. He didn't have the highest opinion of himself, but Yuuri knew he was, at the very least, better than the majority of guys Victor had dated.

The sadness must have leaked through while he was lost in his own head, because Mari placed a calm hand on his shoulder, making Yuuri flinch from the touch. "What's going on, little brother?"

Yuuri calmly considered Mari in the reflection of the mirror, reading her question as sincere. "I slept with Victor," he ignored Mari's "about time" comment and kept going, "I don't think I can stay with the firm any longer." Somehow in the last twelve hours, these two decisions had become linked in Yuuri's mind, not shaking even when Mari scowled at him.

"That only makes sense under one condition," she paused, waiting for Yuuri to inquire further. When no inquiry came, Mari shook his shoulder, "if you aren't in love with him, then forget it happened and leave the firm. If you are though…" Mari was laser focused on him, making Yuuri squirm, "it is time to stop pretending you are weak, and be the strong man we all know you are." With a final shove to his shoulder, Mari walked from the room.

Combing shaking fingers through his hair, Yuuri raised an eyebrow at his reflection when the doorbell rang. Sunday dinners were sacred in the Katsuki family. They were supposed to be family member only traditions, broken only when other family members were visiting from out-of-town. The last few dinners hadn't adhered to this rule, and Yuuri was finding it difficult to accept this change, especially as the distinctly male voice floated up the stairs.

He thought briefly about jumping out of the second story window. When his mom's voice called out, Yuuri sighed knowing that he couldn't make the jump from the window without falling and a broken leg wouldn't be worth it. Resigned to survive, he unlocked the bathroom door and dragged himself downstairs.

* * *

"He wasn't that bad," Mari's barely repressed chuckles had Yuuri rolling his eyes. "At least he was a doctor, what was the last one she tried to set you up with?"

Yuuri felt relaxed, feet propped up on the banister as he and Mari rocked in the matching front porch swings. "She thought he was a veterinarian."

"Oh! Wait! That's right!" Mari crumpled in laughter with the memory. "Language barrier," was all she could sneak out between her giggles.

The man had been a taxidermist, and had given them a very detailed account of how he could stuff and preserve Vicchan for Yuuri whenever his beloved dog died. Mari had excused herself to laugh in the pantry and Yuuri had fought the urge to throw up, willing Vicchan to run away and hide from the terrifying man. He had hoped his mother had learned her lesson, but the urology surgeon who had been tonight's guest of honor, told him a different story. A story containing painful and bloody surgeries, which was correspondingly filled with his mother's regret. Yuuri had been given a second helping of dessert along with excessive amounts of sake in hopes of being encouraged to forgive. He had hugged his mother as soon as the dreadful man had left and then plucked the sake bottle from the table, retreating to the porch swings with Mari.

The summer night was thick with heat, but Yuuri watched as the guests of the hot spring sat around a bonfire eating s'mores. All fifteen cottages had remained booked for the summer, the last round of vacationers currently at the beginning of their week-long stay. Kids ran through the grass catching fireflies in the traps that his mother made by hand, while the adults drank sweet wine and chatted around the campfire. It had been one of the busiest summers on record for the family-owned campsite and hot spring, and Yuuri felt the guilt creeping in. He hadn't been nearly as helpful this year, with the law firm only starting to build its clientele and needing all hands on deck to do so. He knew that Mari was a huge help to his parents, but it didn't change the fact that he should be there. Watching the scene before him with a thoughtful consideration, Yuuri barely registered Mari speaking to him.

"Yuuri!"

A hand slapped on his shoulder, making him startle and send his swing moving from side to side. Settling himself, Yuuri threw an aggravated hand up at Mari.

It was her turn to roll her eyes, settling back against the swing and replacing her feet on the top of the banister. "What are you going to do about Victor? You aren't really going to run away are you? I _know_ you are in love with him."

Sake splashed down the front of his shirt as Yuuri completely missed his mouth. "What do you mean, you _know_?" Yuuri shoved the bottle toward his sister, refusing to make eye contact.

"Yuuri," Mari was exasperated as she tipped the bottle to her lips, "everyone knows, it's the way you are around him. No one brings out the snarky, sassy side of my little brother quite like his handsome silver fox of a best friend."

Yuuri snorted, "you're ridiculous."

"Ridiculously right," Mari shot back, shoving Yuuri's shoulder. "Now what are you going to do about it?"

Yuuri stared ahead at the fire, letting the question rattle unsettled in his brain.


	3. Chapter 3

**These two sarcastic idiots finally come to some conclusions. Now they need to have the courage to talk about it.**

 **Also, Yuuri returns to the courtroom. Did anyone ask for a Eros Yuuri in a suit? Because he is here and he isn't even aware of it.**

 **I apologize for the hiatus on this story, but I was playing with the plot line for this chapter and the next, along with publishing my series for the YOI Reverse Bang, my new pet store/rescue AU, and a couple of coffee shop/college AU drabbles (and a Chris meta post). This story is plotted to continue for one more chapter, although I could extend the story line if everyone is really into it. (This is the shortest chapter is this fic and the next one is hella long. Who needs chapter balance anyway? I say nay!)**

 **Also there is now a side fic (because self-control doesn't exist in my world) and the always enabling fullmetalkarneval13 sent me a head canon on Tumblr that I couldn't pass up. Check out Team Building if you want to see the origin of the Law Firm of Nerds.**

 **Want to interact with me or send me an AU, prompt or HC idea? Come see me on Tumblr! n3rdlif343va**

* * *

 _Deny everything._

It was simple advice; advice that Yuuri had given to many of his clients whenever they called from the inside of a police precinct begging for representation at all hours of the night. As a public defender, Yuuri had spent countless nights rushing from the comfort of his bed, racing to various precincts across the city to come to the aid of a familiar criminal face. It wasn't supposed to be like that, and he knew that most of the attorneys in his old office wouldn't dream of handling clients the way he did, but Yuuri had felt a moral obligation to help each person who called him. He was requested by name throughout his time as a state employee and most of his repeat clients called him directly, letting Yuuri complete the paperwork for his representation on their behalf.

Victor and Phichit had given him a hard time, especially in the first year, about how tired Yuuri looked and how hard he worked. It never changed his attitude though; people needed to be helped and Yuuri intended to help them. When he left the public defender's office, some of those clients had come with him, receiving reduced fees from his partners for their representation.

On the balmy Monday morning, Yuuri stared in his bathroom mirror, reciting his sage advice to himself. As soon as he reached the office, Phichit would be on top of him. Yuuri wasn't naïve enough to think that Victor would have kept their Friday night endeavors to himself during his Sunday time with Phichit. The question of exactly what the level of detail Victor had provided buzzed in Yuuri's mind like an angry attention-seeking wasp.

Wiping a hand down his face, Yuuri sighed knowing he would have told Phichit as well. At least, Phichit was fairly neutral in the advice department, and Yuuri knew that his name wouldn't have been dragged through the mud by either party to the conversation. It didn't stop his heart from racing in his chest, conjuring every question Phichit could have asked to create a crazy train of anxiety in his mind. Gritting his teeth, Yuuri opened his digital calendar, sighing when the hour blocks for the first part of his day were glaringly empty.

Instead of changing into his suit, Yuuri stripped out of his pajamas and stepped into his gym shorts. Yanking a t-shirt over his head and tying his shoes on his feet, Yuuri felt a sense of relief. He could have taken his own advice. He could have gone straight to the office and dodged Phichit, denying Friday night ever happened and any sign of his feelings. He could have spent a few distracted hours doing paperwork and making phone calls, knowing that Victor was scheduled in court all day. Instead, he was going to run to the gym at leg-breaking speed and lift weights until his mind finally quieted.

* * *

Victor sat at his desk staring at his phone. He had unlocked and opened the message app so often over the last few hours that the smear of his thumb and the tap of his index finger had left distinct finger prints across his screen. Court started at nine thirty, but Victor had arrived at the office as the sun rose, Makkachin happily sleeping over his feet under the desk. It had been useless to pretend that Victor was able to sleep or be a functional human, so he had come to the office to strategize about his own love life.

Not texting Yuuri for two whole days was causing Victor to teeter on the edge of a nervous breakdown. In their entire friendship, this had been the longest they had gone without talking. The late hours of Sunday had brought Victor face-to-face with the realization that Yuuri had always been, and always would be, the center of his world. He had moved into the same apartment complex as Yuuri when they were juniors in undergrad. They had sat next to each other and signed up for classes so they would have the same schedule. Senior year, when language requirements crept up on them, they had signed up for each other's native languages, studying together for every single test. Victor had aced Japanese 101, all due to Yuuri's incredible tutoring skills.

From the moment Victor sat down next to Yuuri in the library freshman year, Yuuri had been an integral part of his life. They were so woven together that all of Victor's most important adult memories included the snarky commentary of his best friend. It wasn't necessarily a co-dependency issue, but Victor could see how it might appear like one.

It wasn't like Victor hadn't had plenty of boyfriends over the years of their friendship. He wasn't completely dependent on Yuuri for happiness, there had been plenty of others that had filled the romantic void in his life. _But none of them stuck around for long_ , a little voice whispered in Victor's head sounding remarkably like Phichit again. Groaning onto his desk, Victor felt the brutal hand of truth smacking him across the face.

None of them had been Yuuri. From the first day in class when Yuuri had ripped him to proverbial shreds with a mockingly arrogant tone lacing every word, Victor had been a goner. And with every argument after that, every study session that elapsed into heated debate, and every time Yuuri was there to pick up the pieces of Victor's broken heart, Victor had fallen a little deeper. It happened so gradually that Victor had hardly noticed the descent into love, although all of the little moments toppled out of the closeted part of his brain now, landing in a messy pile of _duh_.

Yuuri rubbing his shoulders during hour seven of preparing for the bar exam. Yuuri making katsudon after every successfully passed test. His best friend nursing every illness, every heart ache, and every bad mood with his understanding eyes and quick humor. It was Yuuri. It always had been.

Pushing back into his chair, Victor fisted his hands into his hair. Maybe he hadn't been as naïve as he pretended to be. He distinctly remembered the shock of attraction during their first debate and the first time he watched Yuuri lean over his notes in the library. Another memory floated in, constricting Victor's heart and causing him to fight back tears.

 _"Yuuri," Victor whimpered, burying his head deeper in his best friend's lap, "how could someone be so mean?"_

 _Tucking an arm around Victor's waist, Yuuri chuckled and paused the movie. They were on their third viewing of The Notebook and there wasn't a chance that they would miss a plot point, but Victor appreciated the gesture. Snuggling tighter into Yuuri's waist, Victor inhaled the scent of his best friend. There was a sense of comfort there that he couldn't find anywhere else._

 _He had been dumped again, another boy muttering under his breath about Victor's friendships interfering with their relationship. It was a consistent argument from everyone he dated and he could never understand where they were coming from. This break up, however, had also come with the accusation that Victor had been cheating. He was a lot of things, but a cheater was not one of them._

 _"He didn't deserve you," Yuuri ran his fingers in Victor's scalp. Yuuri was the only one that indulged this simple need that made Victor's entire body relax. "Honestly, none of these jerks do. Maybe you should aim for someone who is a little higher on the food chain."_

 _Chuckling, Victor settled his face against Yuuri's soft stomach. They always found themselves in this position, Yuuri's feet propped on the hand-me-down coffee table and Victor spread over the rest of the couch, head cradled in Yuuri's lap. It was comfortable and snuggly, providing the exactly right amount of contact for each of them. No matter what bad had happened in the day, the couch and their familiar idents were ready to ease it away._

 _"I wouldn't even know where to start," Victor felt sleep creeping up on him as the skilled fingers continued to massage his head, "any ideas?" A thought fluttered in his head, a baby butterfly of an idea that was struggling to take flight._

 _"How about not at two a.m. when the bars are closing?" Yuuri laughed when Victor nipped at his soft tummy roll, "I mean, it would be a start."_

 _The response was lost on him as Victor fell over the edge of sleep._

There was a last part of the memory, one that Victor had long ago convinced himself was part of a dream and not a portion of reality. Yuuri's sigh as a thumb rubbed over Victor's cheek and a soft, "me, maybe." Those two words caught in Victor's throat, choking him with the possibility of all those years wasted.

 _None of that mattered now_ , Victor thought, sullenly unlocking his phone and hopelessly taping the messaging app again. For two days his world had been without the sarcastic input of Yuuri Katsuki, and Victor knew now, more than ever, that he couldn't happily live without it. All that was left was to figure out exactly what to do about it.

 _Be honest._

The advice he always told his clients as they sat in his office, guarded by the privilege that existed between them. Victor always wanted the truth, even if it meant attempting to defend a guilty client. He told everyone who sat in the plush red chairs across from his desk that he could only represent them if they were completely honest with him. Several years of hypocrisy had him cringing into his own hand.

He was going to take his own advice. The resolve to do so only growing stronger as he pushed to his feet to pace through his office, unable to concentrate on trial prep and glancing out at the main door every few seconds. Yuuri's schedule was open this morning, which meant he should arrive in the office before nine giving Victor at least the chance to see his face.

Yuuri was not good with uncertainty and Victor knew that subtly speaking of the issue wouldn't work. _Hell_ , Victor fondly thought while smacking his forehead with his palm, _a note reading "I love you, dumbass" wrapped around a brick and thrown at Yuuri's head might not even work._ It would come down to Victor throwing himself full body at Yuuri, pinning his best friend to the ground and loudly declaring his feelings using the clearest language possible. Victor was convinced he could do it, and he felt ready to throw himself on the line for the sake of his very own happily ever after. Bouncing on the balls of his feet, he began to practice all the words he would use to make Yuuri understand.

Except that Yuuri never showed up in the office.

It was five minutes after nine and Victor had to leave for court. He exited, locking the doors behind him and sighing into his own disappointment. Yuuri's avoidance skills were legendary, but this was getting out of hand. He wasn't going to let Yuuri get away, not from their friendship and not from everything else they could be to each other. His best friend could run from everyone else, but Victor wasn't going to let Yuuri escape this time. Determination set in Victor's jaw as he marched off toward the stone courthouse.

* * *

 _Stupid Victor and his stupid perfect hair_ , Yuuri huffed internally as he raised the weight bar over his head again.

 _Those damn blue eyes and the always present smirk_ , Yuuri scowled as he lowered the bar.

 _That glorious ass and flawless dick_ , Yuuri flushed as his thoughts became more x-rated, shoving the bar up harder and bringing it down faster.

Yuuri's eyebrows knitted together as he tried to force away the thoughts about Victor's physical being, _Damn him and his ideal level of competitive spirit, even in stupid things like Phichit's ill-advised team building activities._ Now he was being ridiculous and the frustration caused a low growl to vibrate in his chest.

Slamming the bar back into its holding place, Yuuri shoved up from the bench, smacking his head on the resting bar. He was going to send Victor the bill if his cut required stitches. _Fucking Victor and his complete invasion of Yuuri's mind. Fuck him. And not in that way… okay maybe in that way._

Yuuri kicked the wall.

He had been running and lifting for over two hours and nothing would get Victor out of his brain. His best friend. His prime verbal sparring partner. His biggest competitor and supporter. _The only man he has ever been in love with._ "FUCK!" Yuuri exclaimed. This time it was out loud and startled the other gym users around him. Embarrassed, Yuuri fled to the locker room, slamming down onto the nearest bench and dropping his head into his hands.

 _Why now?_ Yuuri screamed into his own internal chaos. He had gone nine years without ever looking at Victor the way everyone else did, why did that have to change now?

Except he was a liar. A contradiction-filled idiotic mass of a liar. His brain was a Victor montage of memories assaulting his beloved denial, stabbing holes at every angle to create a porous argument that crippled into ash. Cradling his head, Yuuri let the realization fall around him, right down to the very first moment he fell for Victor Nikiforov.

 _Week two of sociology was shaping up to be as boring as week one. Yuuri had given up hope for intelligent conversation and sunk further into his desk chair, doodling poodles on his notebook as another co-ed yammered on with a dull and horrifically inaccurate argument. The first class had proven how useless it was to attempt a proper discussion with his classmates. Even the teacher seemed to have a sieve for a brain. He had signed up for sociology on the hopes of finding some lively spirits among the liberal arts students, begging for a break from the mundane lectures of math and science. Instead he had found a bunch of privileged kids sitting on their high horses discussing topics of socioeconomic status as if they were only theoretical in nature._

 _It was his voice that Yuuri noticed first, new to the class and unabashedly confident. The smooth accented English which was the general indication of a foreign student. It wasn't a judgement or criticism, as Yuuri still carried his own accent despite his family's near decade spent in the states. The voice was soothing, as it calmly and passive aggressively tore the other student's arguments into verbal confetti._

 _The potential for challenge had Yuuri sitting up straighter in his seat. He hated the vague original points made by his ignorant classmate, but his constant need to play devil's advocate had him quickly mounting a counter-defense. As soon as the arguments from the back of the room had slowed, Yuuri pounced, drilling back with his own well-informed counter attack. He didn't think he imagined the sharp intake of breath from his faceless opponent and was pleasantly surprised when he was met with respectful opposition._

 _They continued for almost the entire hour, their classmates faces growing more confused as the teacher leaned back into his chair obviously appreciating that his obligation to teach had been wiped away. It probably would have gone longer, but the teacher had whistled at them to cease fire, dismissing class with a chuckle. Yuuri immediately slipped his notebook into his bag, standing from his desk filled with apprehension about meeting his new competitor._

 _Then the other student came into view. A breath-stealing vision of a man, all silver hair and blue eyes with a smile that could outshine the sun. He approached Yuuri, his perfectly fitted slacks hugging his slim legs while his cotton shirt looked soft enough to touch._

 _So Yuuri ran._

 _There was no stopping his feet, even as he heard the exclamation behind him. He hadn't stopped running until he had shoved himself into a library chair and shoved the headphones over his years._

Years of schooling had told Yuuri he was a smart man. Sitting in the locker room, ghosts of the past haunting every cell in his brain, informed him that he was, in fact, a complete moron. He was in love with Victor Nikiforov and most likely he was alone in his emotional downfall. There was nothing in him that Victor would want, a fact that Yuuri knew all too well after nine years. He was nothing like any of the men Victor dated, and now he was left with his heart bleeding in his hands. There was no way Yuuri was going to sacrifice his friendship with Victor, so he would avoid him until the feelings disappeared, praying that it would happen sooner than later.

A ringing from inside of his gym locker had Yuuri briefly staring at the metal door in confusion. Processing the rapid succession at which his phone was repeatedly playing _Lean on Me_ had Yuuri scrambling up to retrieve his backpack. The song was programmed into his phone by a drunk Phichit, who had registered it as the ringtone for all of his own numbers and Seung-gil's. Snagging the phone from the bottom of his bag, Yuuri tapped it awake, startling at the message bar.

Nine missed calls blared from his screen. One from Phichit, the rest from Seung-gil. Worry overtook Yuuri's need to avoid Phichit. Plunking back down on the nearest bench, he wiped the sweat from his face and dialed Seung-gil's number.

"Hello, Mr. Nikiforov," Seung-gil deadpanned into the phone.

"Seung-gil," Yuuri frowned, "this isn't Victor, it's Yuuri. I called you from my cell phone."

"Did I stutter?" Seung-gil asked, the playful turn in his voice alerting Yuuri to his point. When Phichit teased it was light-hearted and sarcastically on-point. When Seung-gil teased it was like being hit over the head with a two by four comprised of truth. Phichit's husband used humor to point out reality, and Yuuri was not in a mindset prepared to handle it at the moment.

"Is someone dead over there?" Yuuri asked, plucking at a loose thread on his sneaker, "Does someone want to be dead over there?" He let his irritation leak into his mocking question. Through the phone came sounds of someone retching and Yuuri sat up on the bench. "What the?"

"I'm dying!" Phichit yelled, before his voice became a muffled jumble of curse words.

There was a pause while Seung-gil ignored Yuuri and whispered quietly to Phichit. It was always amusing to hear them interact, Phichit's bright lively personality clashing and complimenting Seung-gil's quiet stoic nature. Right now though, Yuuri was increasingly more anxious by the stomach-turning sounds vibrating through his phone. "Seung-gil, is he ok?"

"NO!" Phichit shouted. "His father tried to kill me!"

Yuuri heard Seung-gil chuckle and felt the knots in his own stomach release. Phichit sounded awful, but was joking his way through it which was a good sign.

"My father made breakfast," Seung-gil stated as if that was all the explanation Yuuri would need to understand.

"He made death poison!" Phichit yelled, his words echoing off of a toilet bowl that Yuuri couldn't see. "You have to cover me, Katsuki!"

Catching another round of Phichit's soundtrack of vomiting, Yuuri winced, pulling the phone from his ear. Realizing Seung-gil was trying to talk to him, Yuuri cautiously returned the speaker to the side of his head.

"The file is located in the bottom right door," Seung-gil said.

"Sorry," Yuuri scratched the back of his neck. "Repeat that?" Even though he hadn't heard Seung-gil's entire statement, he had an inkling as to what he was talking about.

"The case file, I will text you the name. Phichit says the kid is innocent and the victim is a jerk. Right up your alley. He is in no shape to work today unless you think my-attorney-puked-on-me is a good defense strategy." Seung-gil's flat expression always made his jokes slightly funnier to Yuuri.

"Yuck," Yuuri said, not sure how else to express his lack of joy in returning to court in this capacity. It had to be him though. Victor was in court already and there was no one else to cover. Heaving from the bench, he said his goodbyes to Seung-gil and headed for the showers.

* * *

There were still two hours before trial would take place, and an hour before the client and his parents would arrive. According to Phichit's notes, the kid was nowhere near his neighbor's shed when a fairly inexpensive lawnmower was stolen. Phichit seemed to think the neighbor stole his own lawnmower to make an insurance claim, but Yuuri saw only circumstantial evidence to support that. School records from the local high school marked the teenage defendant as present in school and the kid's track coach had provided a letter stating that he was in practice until almost six in the evening. The case against the kid was weak at best and Yuuri found himself wondering why the state would even pursue it.

A quick call to Sara, who luckily was the prosecutor assigned to the case, made everything crystal clear. The state had wanted to drop the charges and release the kid without a need for restitution, but the supposed victim was, as Sara put it, crazier than their philosophy professor who wore tin foil hats to class. She had also candidly told Yuuri how the guy had treated her during all of their interactions, and quietly whispered "make him cry, Katsuki," before disconnecting the call. Sara was one of the best district attorneys in the county, and Yuuri was thankful that she considered him a friend before she thought of him as opposing counsel. It was going to make his unexpected afternoon case much more interesting.

A few key strokes on his computer led Yuuri to the name of the insurance company that held the man's homeowners insurance. After a few minutes on hold, during which time Yuuri quickly filled out a subpoena requesting recent insurance claims, he was able to charm one of the customer service reps into faxing him the information he needed. Settling back in front of the file, Yuuri hummed to himself, pleased to find all of his suspicions to be correct. There was a level of adrenaline that went along with preparing for a case, and Yuuri could feel the appealing tingle rippling under his skin.

A knock at his door had him lifting his head. He had neglected to pay attention to the time and felt the fear rise in his throat that Victor could be standing outside of his office at that very moment. Pushing from his desk, legs shaking slightly, Yuuri yanked open the door.

"Where's Mr. Chulanont?"

Yuuri blinked for a moment, staring at the heads of the firm's interns. It wasn't a paid gig, but it helped the two law students become familiar with the actual practice of the law and gave them access to the conference room to study. They rarely interacted with Yuuri, unless they were making large chunks of copies for his discovery. Usually they were following Victor and Phichit around, eager to witness their remarkable defense skills.

Finding the two of them outside of Yuuri's door, threw him for a loop. "Phichit is out sick today, were you supposed to be working with him?" Yuuri glanced between the blond hair and bold eyes of Yuri and the dark hair and cold eyes of Otabek.

"We are supposed to shadow him today," Yuri threw his hands up in the air and then waved wildly at his own body, "don't tell me I put on this stupid suit for nothing!" He tossed his bag on the ground and kicked it. Yuuri smiled at the fiery intern, imaging Yuri as an impassioned civil rights attorney marching to fight against the man. The thought made him chuckle, earning him a scowl from Yuri.

"He is also supposed to lead our study group tonight," Otabek tugged on his own suit jacket, looking uncomfortable in the deep brown suit. He was the quieter of the two interns, but his dry sense of humor had made Otabek a welcome addition to the team. Yuuri could easily see Otabek being a tax attorney, using his logical brain to sort numbers in his always efficient way.

"Well," Yuuri knew what had to happen, hating it as he gave in to his own fate, "you can shadow me. I'm covering Phichit's case."

"Are you even good?" Yurio spat, grabbing his bag from the ground and flinging it over his shoulder. "We don't want to watch you get some kid thrown in jail."

Yuuri laughed, eyes crinkling at the suspicious look on Yuri's face. "Trust me, you'll get a show." Wiping a hand over his face, Yuuri tried to compose himself. His confidence never wavered in a courtroom and if Yuri and Otabek thought Phichit was good, they were about to be blown out of the water. The rest of his life was a complete disaster, but standing in front of judge and jury was always like returning home.

"And the study group?" Otabek studied Yuuri thoughtfully as he spoke.

"I guess I can do that too," Yuuri sighed, pulling his phone from his pocket to text his sister and ask her to let Vicchan out later in the day. "How about dinner ahead of time? My treat?"

Yuri leaned against the wall, arms crossed over his chest. "How about if you win, we'll treat and if you lose, you buy." The challenge was on Yuri's face and Yuuri couldn't help smirking.

 _This guy has no idea who he dealing with_ , Yuuri thought wickedly as he held out his hand. "Deal," Yuuri grinned down at Yuri, trying to keep a lid on his smugness. "Now get in here and help me finish prepping this file before the client gets here."

Letting the chatter of the interns and the clicking of the copy machine distract him, Yuuri tucked his thoughts of Victor back into the neatly stacked compartmentalized bins inside of his brain.

* * *

"Hey! Katsuki's in courtroom three!"

Victor heard the whisper behind him as he was finishing accepting the plea bargain for his client and placing the agreement on the record. A little demon of lust ran up his spine, climbing over his shoulder to slam straight down into his stomach. Controlling himself externally, Victor shook hands with the prosecutor, thanked the judge and guided his client toward the back of the courtroom.

"What's he doing in there anyway?"

Pausing only a breath from the doors, Victor listened to the vaguely familiar attorneys talk about Yuuri.

"Defending some kid. He's against Sara too."

"Good God, they better call my case next. I'm going to be pissed if I miss seeing him in action again."

Practically shoving his client into the hallway, Victor made quick work of briefing him and his family about the agreement they had made with the state. His focus was poorly split, letting the words automatically move through his lips without any thought behind them. Yuuri was here, in the courthouse. After avoiding Victor for two and a half days, there was no way Yuuri could evade him now. Even if they weren't able to speak, Victor would be able to see him and in that moment there was nothing Victor wanted more. Shaking hands with his client for a third time, Victor excused himself and stumbled blindly toward courtroom three.

The room was silent as Victor entered and he was sure that everyone could hear his heart slamming in his chest. At the front of the courtroom, situated next to a very nervous looking teenager, was the unstoppable force that was Yuuri Katsuki. Hair pushed back to expose his forehead, glasses firmly in place over the bridge of his nose, and tailored suit (which Victor had picked out) hugging Yuuri's perfect form in all the right places had Victor practically drooling onto his own shoes.

"Don't you just want to get on your knees and call him daddy when he looks like that?"

The voice was unmistakable and Victor twisted to come face-to-face with Chris sitting on the bench next to him. In his haste to find a seat, Victor hadn't even noticed that he had slid in next to one of Yuuri's many admirers. "That would make Yuuri very uncomfortable, actually," Victor let his words fill with venom as he narrowed his eyes at Chris. "And trust me, I am the authority on exactly what Yuuri likes."

"Hmmm, aren't we possessive today?" Christophe smirked, relaxing against the back of the bench. "Something new you want to tell me about?"

The glint in Chris's eyes made Victor squirm with the repressed need to tell Chris exactly where to go. Unfortunately he never got the chance, as the bailiff barked out the demand for quiet in the room.

So far, every step of the short trial had followed Yuuri's guided path. The rest of the room had fallen away, leaving him with tunnel vision, focusing only on the victim sitting on the stand. The other defendants, the other attorneys, and even his own interns no longer existed in Yuuri's bubble. It was only him and the sadistic-looking victim, and Yuuri was determined to wipe the smug look off of the wrinkled face.

He started slowly, asking the man to recall the events of the day of the burglary in precise detail. Making mental notes of each stutter, Yuuri then proceeded to poke directly at each of the weak spots in the story, watching as the man in front of him became increasingly frazzled. By the time he was entering into evidence the insurance claim form for a lawnmower three years newer than the model the man had reported missing, the alleged victim looked ready to beg for his time on the stand to be over. Yuuri calmly approached the stand, placing both hands on the edge of the testimony box and asked the man to explain the difference in the two reports. There was no answer. Narrowing his eyes, Yuuri asked the man how he could live with himself, bringing criminal charges against an innocent boy to support his insurance fraud. When Sara objected to his question, Yuuri shrugged, smiling coyly even as the judge accepted Sara's motion. He had gotten his point across, he could see it in the judge's face, and there was no way his client was going to receive a punishment.

It had been a long time since Victor had seen Yuuri in trial, his mouth drying with the raw, controlled power exuding from his law partner. Victor performed in court like a dancer performing a solo ballet routine, but Yuuri was like a prize fighter, going for the knock out every single time. Crossing his legs, Victor tucked his briefcase over his lap, attempting to disguise his body's reactions to Yuuri's confident smile.

"That man," Chris exhaled, tossing an arm behind Victor, "man, he could fuck me up any day of the week."

The only way to avoid punching Chris was to get up and leave, aborting any of Victor's original plans regarding Yuuri. Victor stood at the back of the courtroom only briefly, listening to the judge announce her decision to dismiss the case against Yuuri's client. It was interesting to note that Sara didn't even look upset at her loss, winking at Yuuri as he allowed his client to hug him.

There was part of Victor that wanted to wait in the hallway, to corner Yuuri when he was in high spirits and have it out with him right there in the middle of the courthouse. He convinced himself to be patient, striding from the courthouse and heading back toward his own car. Yuuri would come back, elated from his win, and Victor would finally be able to corner his stubborn ass to say all the things Victor needed to say. Giddy with his own plans, Victor cranked up his music and sang his way back to the office.

* * *

"I thought the guy was going to cry!" Yuri pumped his fist in the air as he walked with Yuuri and Otabek back toward Yuuri's car. They had detoured to the school and left Otabek's car parked in the parking lot to ride together to the courthouse. "I don't even mind buying you dinner! That was awesome!"

Yuuri hadn't paid a lot of attention to the interns, but he knew the enthusiasm was out of character for Yuri. Laughing in spite of his confusion, he sank into the driver's side of his car waiting for instructions on where to head. Once they were headed toward the restaurant, he let their chatter fall away from him as his own thoughts washed back in.

The thrill of being in front of a judge again was still zinging through his veins. Yuuri had completely forgotten how it felt to orchestrate a successful case. The fear in the eyes of the lying accuser, the relief in the eyes of his client, and the gratefulness of his client's family circled through his mind, making his heart race. It was an adrenaline rush that Yuuri hadn't realized he had been missing.

Parking in front of the restaurant, Yuuri let the residual high wash over him, giving him the confidence he would need to lead a study group of second year law students. Currently, he felt like he could do anything and Yuuri's pesky brain reminded him there was only one thing he should do. Pushing the thoughts of Victor and grand declarations away, Yuuri let himself get swept up in conversation and good food with Yuri and Otabek.

* * *

Makkachin whined at Victor's feet, begging to go home and leave the confines of the navy blue walls. The sun hung low in the sky and their stomachs were exchanging whale songs of hunger. Disappointment hanging over him, Victor clipped on the dog leash and lead Makkachin out of the darkened office.

He couldn't understand where Yuuri had gone. They always returned to the office, especially after a win. There were chalkboards to add tallies to, shots to be taken, and stories to be told. Victor wouldn't need to hear the story of Yuuri's victory after watching it firsthand, but he would have eagerly listened anyway.

Instead he was heading home alone, driving through a fast food joint to buy food that he probably wouldn't eat. Tossing a chicken nugget to Makkachin in the back seat, Victor let his mind wander as he guided his car toward home.

He hadn't seen Yuuri, but he couldn't continue to let the silence hang between them. If nothing else, Yuuri was his best friend and Victor simply wouldn't let that go. Phichit was a wonderful part of his life, as was Seung-gil, but no one compared to Yuuri. Grit setting into Victor's jawline, he entered his garage, cutting his engine off and letting Makkachin out.

It took fifteen minutes for Victor to finally send his text message. "What are you doing?" it read, in possibly the most boring text ever. The question didn't convey any of Victor's thoughts or feelings, but he immediately felt the nerves take over his body. When his notification sound for Yuuri sounded from his phone, Victor dropped it. Scooping it up, he stared blankly at the response before bursting into laughter.

"Carrying the entire damn firm on my back, that's what."

It was snarky, and sarcastic, and so Yuuri that it made Victor's heart ache. "Do you even lift, bro?" Victor shot back, inciting an old joke from their college days.

"I pick things up and I put things down." Yuuri shot back within seconds.

Victor's smile was so wide it made his cheeks ache. "Glad to know you're alive, Katsuki. I was ready to send out a search party. Good thing they would only have to look three places since you are painfully predictable."

"Says the man who is probably eating a burger with just meat and cheese as I type this."

Victor looked down at his lap, where his plain meat and cheese burger sat with a single bite taken out of it. He didn't like the wilted version of vegetables or the over-processed condiments of fast food companies, so he avoided them which was a major divergence to how he consumed all other food.

Damnit, he loved this man so much it might actually kill him. Not wanting to chance anything, he opted to continue the patterned level of joking. Snapping a picture of his burger, making sure to include an adequate amount of his tight suit pants over his crotch in the photo, Victor forwarded it to Yuuri with the caption "meat is what's for dinner." The innuendo was subtle, and Victor was convinced that Yuuri and all his density would never pick up on it.

* * *

"AI! Yuuri! Stop staring at your phone and help us!"

Why he had quickly become "Yuuri" while Phichit remained " Mr. Chulanont, was beyond him. The angry demand had Yuuri glancing up from the shaking phone in his hands. It was Yuri who had interrupted Yuuri's small panic attack at the picture. Did Victor mean to include a significant portion of his barely contained crotch in that picture? And if so, was his statement supposed to be some type of flirting? Yuuri had no idea what to think, smirking only slightly at his correct assumptions about Victor's dinner. Turning on his own camera app, he snapped a picture of Yuri's face and sent it to Victor. The caption read "I'm angering the little one by texting on my phone."

Victor's response was instantaneous. "He is like a declawed cat. All snarl." Yuuri snickered, glancing up when Yuri glared at him. His phone pinged again, and Yuuri flushed at Victor's message. "Chris called you daddy today in court."

How the hell was he supposed to respond to that? Yuuri shook his head and changed the subject. "What are you stalking me now?" He added a winking face so Victor would know he was kidding. After hitting send, he panicked that Victor would take it as flirting. Yuuri had never used a winking face when interacting with Victor and now his cheeks were catching fire as he realized he was _flirting_. As soon as he was finished with the study group, he was going to go get his head examined.

* * *

Mouth hanging open, Victor stared down at the tiny winking yellow face. Yuuri sent gun emojis and tiny emoji ambulances, but never any smiley faces, let alone _winking_ smiley faces. For a moment, Victor was stunned into silence, wrapping his head around the fact that Yuuri could be flirting with him. Carefully drafting his response, Victor sent back "just making sure you don't ruin our firm's reputation." Attached was a few of Victor's favorite emojis, including his own little winking face.

They exchanged texts for almost two hours, never getting beyond the banter that was patently theirs. When Victor slipped under his covers, he felt a sense of relief mingled with an overwhelming cowardliness. Tomorrow, he promised himself. Tomorrow he would throw away all caution and tell Yuuri that Victor intended to date him, hopefully for the rest of their lives.

With that thought at the center of his mind, Victor slipped into his first peaceful sleep since Friday night.


	4. Chapter 4

**This AU is officially going to be continued! I have approximately 9 more chapters outlined! Also, please look for the Seungchuchu prequel fic: When Sarcasm and Optimism Collide!**

 **I'm sorry for the delay with posting but I have been fighting with errors on this site for weeks! I am going to be uploading a massive amount of content today!**

* * *

Sleep had become a figment of Yuuri's imagination.

For another span of fitful eight hours he had laid across his bed, overanalyzing every text that he had exchanged with Victor. He reread every word, stared at every emoji, and had generally driven himself to the point of frustrated madness.

If it had been anyone other than Victor, Yuuri would have been sure, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the texts were meant as flirting. But he had seen Victor flirt. Hours and hours of fast-flying texts, every one of them filled with sexual innuendo and heavy insinuation of growing lust. Other than the one crotch picture, which could have easily been Victor's failing with the phone camera, there had been no indication of anything remotely sexual. There was the usual amount of sarcasm and plenty of digs at each other's competence, but nothing else. It was the exact same as it always was, minus two winking smiley faces and a possible crotch shot.

Shoving from the bed, Yuuri rubbed a heavy hand over his tired face. His restlessness been beneficial only in the chance it had given him to pack for the conference. An event that had seemed so far away when he scheduled it, but was now upon him like a forgotten deadline. Kicking his duffle bag toward his hanging suits, he made his way to the bathroom.

It was a double-edged sword of timing. On one side, Yuuri thought it would be good to step away for a couple of days. Even being only an hour away from their small circle would give him a chance to clear his mind. He would be able to analyze every potential argument regarding his relationship with Victor. Understanding every side to a case was his method as a lawyer, and logically the same skills should apply to a decision between friendship and more. He huffed to himself, realizing that logic had probably ceased to exist sometime on Friday night.

Bouncing on his toes as the shower water heated to a preferred temperature, Yuuri couldn't get the unoiled gears in his brain to stop grinding. On the other side of the precariously balanced sword, Yuuri knew how quickly Victor could change his mind. If, by some stroke of stupid luck, Victor _was_ interested, that interest could flit away by the time Yuuri got back. He had seen Victor lose interest in other guys in a matter of hours, and the thought was making Yuuri's stomach sour.

A quick dousing of water and suds was all Yuuri could handle. The sadistic army of nerves marching along inside of him made it impossible to concentrate, even on ordinary activities. He moved into his familiar morning routine at the hands of his unstable autopilot, praying for relief from the constant buzz of overthinking. Brushing his teeth and combing out the tangles from his hair with his right hand, Yuuri flicked through his phone calendar with his left, demanding his brain focus on the tasks. Phichit had court that morning and Victor would get to handle JJ in the afternoon. Yuuri found himself almost disappointed that he wouldn't be able to watch that fiasco go down. Victor had a notoriously horrible memory for periphery humans, and the handful of people Yuuri had dated all seemed to fall into that category. Given JJ's own personality and the boisterous kiss he had bestowed on Yuuri in the vestibule of the office, there was plenty of predictable drama for the afternoon, none of it having to do with JJ's case.

It was drama Yuuri would gladly skip, even though a small part of him wanted to play the fly on the wall. Even if traffic was non-existent, the conference check-in started at noon and with the hour drive, Yuuri would have to leave immediately after breakfast. JJ's case was scheduled on the afternoon docket making Yuuri's potential voyeurism of the madness impossible. Smiling to himself, he unlocked his phone and clicked on one of his newest contacts. He couldn't be the fly, but he knew a certain declawed cat that might be willing to help him. Firing off a text to Yuri, he tossed his bath towel into the hamper and went in pursuit of clothing.

Shrugging on a blue polo shirt, Yuuri took his time sliding his legs into his jeans. Trying desperately to distract himself, he visualized the list of items in his duffle bag. Mentally he reviewed the final list of what he needed to pack and once dressed he pursued each missing piece. Finally tucking his suits carefully into his garment bag, Yuuri moved from the bedroom to retrieve his laptop and call Vicchan from the poodle's favorite place on the couch. Clipping on Vicchan's leash, Yuuri took one last glance around his apartment and sighed his way out of the door.

Tuesday morning meant breakfast with Seung-gil at their favorite puppy-and-me café. It was a tradition that had started the first spring after Vicchan became Yuuri's, and was as important to them as Sundays for Phichit and Victor. This Tuesday was as much a necessity as it was tradition, even if Yuuri couldn't fathom eating a single bite.

He had found the café by accident during its official first week of opening. Yuuri had been jogging to the soundtrack filtering from his earbuds, Makkachin and Vicchan happily glued to his side when Georgi's over-the-top greeting interrupted their rhythm. Pausing only to avoid rudeness, Yuuri had fallen in love with the charming idea of the café. After a quick meal, and lots of Georgi snuggles for the dogs, Yuuri waved goodbye to the owner of his new favorite place.

The café was on a small lot, with limited indoor space which was compensated for by a large patio and even larger fenced yard. Dog owners could bring their friendly pets to romp over the plush grassy area, while waiters dressed in t-shirts covered in various dog breeds served drinks and food. It was a simple menu, breakfast and lunch sandwiches, coffee, tea and a few sweets, but everything was made from local ingredients and was delicious in its simplicity. The dogs also had available selections of their own, including bacon flavored dog cookies and a variety of jerkies. The whole place was run by the always dramatic Georgi, who cooed and kissed every dog as they entered the front gate.

Tuesday was their standing date, one that allowed them to check in and indulge in an hour (or two) of pure cynical commentary. Phichit and Victor were the kings of sunshine, and Yuuri and Seung-gil their princes of darkness. Laughing to himself over the comparison, Yuuri carefully placed Vicchan on the front seat of his car and then loaded the trunk with his bags.

He couldn't cancel on Seung-gil, even with the knowledge that there were probably a million questions prepared to rain down on him. Phichit and Seung-gil had offered to take Vicchan for the days of Yuuri's trip and it made sense to send Vicchan home with Seung-gil from the dog restaurant. If questions came, Yuuri would handle them, knowing that Seung-gil would try to understand the discombobulated answers.

Settling into his driver's seat, Yuuri pecked a quick kiss to Vicchan's head before backing out of the driveway. Instead of making a right, Yuuri turned left and heard the reactionary whine from his furry kid in the passenger seat.

Had it been any other Tuesday, Yuuri would have been picking up Makkachin as well, a fact that wasn't going unnoticed by the now pouting Vicchan. Victor hadn't asked about it, so Yuuri hadn't either, letting the slight guilt of leaving Makka behind settle on his shoulders. One missed visit to the Doggy's Day Café wasn't going to be the end of the world and Yuuri reminded himself of this fact as he headed down the street.

* * *

Arriving at the café, Yuuri smiled at Georgi when the café owner bent down to scoop Vicchan into his arms. Georgi always seemed lonely, and Yuuri felt bad for not visiting more often than they did. Listening as Georgi coddled Vicchan, Yuuri glanced out of the back window, spying Seung-gil's dark mop of hair sitting at their usual table. Suppressing his fear, Yuuri accepted Vicchan from Georgi's arms and headed back to face his doom.

Vicchan was out of his arms and under the legs of Seung-gil's husky before Yuuri could pull out his chair from the table. Laughing, he watched as the two dogs romped together in happy greeting. "Hey," Yuuri said, letting his body drop into the chair.

"Hey, Mr. Nikiforov," Seung-gil replied without looking up from his menu.

The smirk was evident, even with the coated paper covering most of Seung-gil's face. Lifting his own menu, Yuuri tried to remain calm. "Already, huh?" He had thought Seung-gil would at least let him drink a sip of coffee before the torture began. It was painfully obvious that he was wrong.

"Someone has to," Seung-gil shrugged, dropping his menu to the table. "Phichit has been leaving you alone. Mostly due to my father almost killing him, but nonetheless, he has stayed quiet." Lifting his own coffee cup, Seung-gil paused, "I won't." When Yuuri didn't respond, Seung-gil took a slow sip of his coffee and replaced it on the table. "How far is your head up your ass? Should I call your father's proctologist?"

That did it. Yuuri burst out laughing, letting the nervous energy roll out of him with the amusement over Seung-gil's question. "No specialist needed. Maybe a few strong men and a crowbar." Yuuri smirked at his friend when Seung-gil chuckled. "Do we have to talk about Victor?" He knew the answer, but it was worth a shot.

"Yes," Seung-gil answered, "because you haven't seen your sister since Sunday so all of her decent advice is out of your ridiculous brain. You're leaving for two days. I need to fill you with realism before your pessimism destroys everything."

Conversation halted as they placed their orders with the cheerful red-headed waitress who had been a member of Yuri's and Otabek's study group. Yuuri paused to answer a couple of her study related questions, remembering only as she walked away that her name was Mila. Happy for the change of topic, Yuuri fiddled with his silverware. "I led a study group last night for our interns. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be." Daring a glance at Seung-gil, Yuuri had to suppress a laugh at the frustrated glare being leveled at his head.

"I'm sure it was as fun as listening to Phichit stress study for the bar," Seung-gil smiled. Yuuri remembered the stories of Phichit, clad in nothing but stress, attempting to memorize law books by reciting them in Shakespearean English. "But, Yuuri…. Victor," the delivery was firm and Seung-gil leveled him once again with an unfailing gaze.

"He is my best friend," Yuuri sighed, turning to watch the dogs play as an excuse not to look at his tablemate. "He has always been there. Now I screwed it up." There it was; the thought that had been resonating in his brain like an out-of-tune violin.

"How so?" There was patience and coaxing laced in the question, and Yuuri knew that Seung-gil would be ready with a proverbial bucket for any of the word vomit that escaped him.

"I made the first move," Yuuri contemplated this statement and corrected himself, "he kissed me first. Everything else…" he trailed off. The memories of Friday night, despite the alcohol, were incredibly vivid and never without bodily reaction. There had never been a more replayed memory in all of Yuuri's life.

"So?" Seung-gil pushed again. "Sounds to me like you both wanted it. If you ask my opinion you have both wanted it since that first day in the library."

It was a reality. Sometime in the knotting and unknotting of Yuuri's thoughts, he had realized that his attraction to Victor had always been there. That in moments of weakness, Yuuri had felt flutters of something even more. After talking with Mari, those flutters had become drumbeats. Beats that had increased in volume with every text sent over Monday night.

"Say it," Seung-gil nodded at Yuuri.

"I love him," Yuuri felt the words slip from his tongue. It was useless to pull them back, something about simply saying them aloud felt like a weight dissipating from his shoulders. "I love him and now I have to quit."

"You're an idiot." Seung-gil's clipped sentence was interrupted by Mila's return to their table.

Placing their orders down, she smiled. "Actually, he is pretty smart. And organized. Can you run the study group all the time? The other guy is always laughing and making jokes. Very approachable, but very social, makes it hard to concentrate sometimes."

"That's his to-be boyfriend you are talking about," Seung-gil joked, concentrating on his sandwich and missing Mila's blush.

"It's not… he's not…" Yuuri stammered.

"Awwww!" Mila exclaimed, "I can totally see that! Sort of ying and a yang thing, even with your hair." She laughed and ruffled Yuuri's hair. "Enjoy your breakfast!"

Seung-gil's laughter held only until Mila had disappeared inside. "Victor's hair is in the white," shaking his head, Seung-gil continued to chuckle as he bit into his breakfast. "Anyway, no quitting, you are stupid, next thought please."

"I don't think he loves me back," Yuuri took an overly large bite of his breakfast sandwich, finding it hard to chew as he let this thought run circles in his brain.

"Idiot," was Seung-gil's only answer.

Yuuri knew that idiot was also meant for him. He also knew that Seung-gil was there when this subject was approached on Sunday with Victor. Somehow, Yuuri felt slightly reassured. The most logical part of his brain told him Seung-gil wouldn't be pushing him on the subject if it meant purposefully leading Yuuri to heartbreak. "If he does love me back, and we date, and we break up then what happens to the firm?"

"You put on your big boy pants and work together." Seung-gil sat his breakfast sandwich down and broke off a piece of turkey jerky to toss to his own furbaby. Across the table, Yuuri bent down to feed Vicchan small bites of doggy breakfast meat. "You'll end up married."

It was rare for Seung-gil to have any level of optimism, even with the direct existence of Phichit in his life. The combination of Seung-gil's realistic answers, and what seemed to be a hint of positivity, was the best weapon against Yuuri's circular thoughts. Unlike Victor, who always had flowing words and comforting cuddles to calm Yuuri, and Phichit who could excitedly talk away Yuuri's worries, Seung-gil used his bluntness as a dagger to cut Yuuri's anxious thoughts to shreds. What was once a swirling mass of uncertainty was quickly becoming a hardened ball of inevitability. He loved Victor. The odds that Victor loved him were beginning to tip towards _yes_ on his brain scale full of lost marbles.

Without thinking, Yuuri pulled his phone from his pocket. He had one hour before he would have to leave for the conference. Although he didn't want the conversation to be rushed, Yuuri needed it to happen more than he needed air or water. Clicking on Victor's ridiculous contact picture, Yuuri lifted his shaking hand to his ear. Seung-gil's encouraging smile and small nod had Yuuri taking a deep breath.

"You have reached the voicemail of Victor Nikiforov. I am unavailable to take your call right now, but if you leave a message, I will return your call at my earliest convenience."

Several seconds of silence passed after the beep as Yuuri lost himself in the melodic tone of Victor's business voice. Across the table, Seung-gil cleared his throat and Yuuri jumped. "Hey, Victor, it's me… Yuuri, it's Yuuri. I have this conference thing and I have to leave in an hour, but if you are around… I guess give me a call. A call would be good. Let's talk. Thanks. Um. Bye." Hanging up the phone, Yuuri tossed it on the table. "Well, I tried."

"Are you sure you are a professional adult? That was the worst voicemail I have ever heard." Seung-gil shook his head as Yuuri laughed. "Victor's extra ass is probably going to save it forever."

Sitting back against his chair, Yuuri let his nerves taint his laughter. There was nothing he could do now. The clock was ticking on his time to leave and the ball was in Victor's court.

* * *

The slope of the hill to Yuuri's parent's home was made up of smooth concrete that lead to packed dirt. Trees lined the driveway making it feel as if there was a separate world on the other side. At the forest opening, stood a circle of fourteen cabins, each equipped with electricity and temperature control systems. The bonfire was in the middle, and a short hike up the hill led to the naturally occurring hot springs which Yuuri's family worked tirelessly to maintain.

This place had become a second home to Victor during his time in the States. He had come to college on an international scholarship, bunking with Seung-gil who had done the same. It was through Seung-gil that Victor had officially met Yuuri and eventually through Yuuri that Victor had found the Katsukis. The wonderfully welcome and loving Katsukis who had made Victor part of their family without hesitation.

Taking the hill slow, remembering the lectures of Papa Katsuki about flinging rocks, Victor let himself recall all the summers of hard labor helping the family with their grounds. Gathering wood, cooking meals with Mama Katsuki, and the summer of the flood which had left them days of repairs with no signs of sleep. The Katsuki Hot Spring was more of a home than anywhere Victor had ever been.

Which was why he found himself parking his car in its usual spot in the morning hours of Tuesday. Letting Makkachin bound off to play with nearby kids, Victor climbed the stairs to the family cabin, stopping to slip off his shoes and place them on the part of the rack that held his name. All of their names were painted there, along with Seung-gil's and Phichit's, and Victor felt a familiar tug of his heart seeing his name next to Yuuri's in complimentary shades of blue and purple.

His head came up as footsteps clomped down the stairs. Mari appeared, looking smug as she yelled over her shoulder, "mama, Victor is here to declare his love for Yuuri!" He felt his cheeks heat up to bonfire temperatures as Mari's smirk returned to him.

Throwing open the kitchen door, Yuuri's mom came clapping into the foyer. "Oh good! It is about time!" Being grabbed into a hug, Victor couldn't resist the warmth of Mama Katsuki's arms. "Good morning, my Vicchan. Let me feed you while you make your grand declarations."

Victor let himself be tugged to the large table and guided into a seat. He was never anyone but "my Vicchan" to Mama Katsuki and the name made him feel guilty now, as his ridiculous brain replayed the debauchery of Friday night. He wondered if he would still be Mama Katsuki's Vicchan if she knew exactly what had happened.

"You look like he did on Sunday," Mari leaned against the table to examine Victor's face.

The bluntness shared between Mari and Seung-gil always made Victor wonder if they had somehow been created from the same stardust. "How did he look?" He winced at his own eagerness. Phichit had been no help in this department, because he hadn't seen Yuuri since Friday either. Victor was desperate to know any information he could drag from anyone.

"Lovesick," Mari answered, scooting away from the table as her mother returned with a plate overflowing with Victor's favorite breakfast foods. "Mama, stop trying to fatten him up! It is getting a little Hansel and Gretel."

Mama Katsuki giggled as she placed the plate in front of Victor with a cup of tea. Sliding in the seat across from him, she propped her hands under her chin. "Now, tell me about how much you love our Yuuri so I can stop setting him up on terrible dates."

Victor choked. Mari stopped in the doorway, twisting on her heels. "Mama… no…" Mari looked ready to burst out laughing, her face pinched into distorted realization.

"I know what a taxidermist is Mari," Mama Katsuki grinned with the delight of her own plan, "that urologist talked my ear off at the grocery store and I was sure he would the one that would finally send Yuuri screaming toward Victor. Was it the urologist?" There was an adorably ridiculous amount of hope in her voice and it broke Mari's resistance to the hilarity of the situation.

Wheezing with laughter, Mari came back to Victor's side, slapping a hand to his shoulder. "My mom can't arrange marriage in this country, so she tried to scare Yuuri into marrying you. Good thing that idiot already loves you, huh?" A final shake of Victor's shoulder and Mari was gone.

 _Marriage. Love. Yuuri loves him. Yuuri is an idiot_. All of these thoughts ran through Victor's head in a Nascar race against each other. He couldn't slow them and felt the impending crash at the back of his teeth. "I want to love marry that idiot!" Victor quasi-shouted with a slam of his fork.

"About damn time!" came Papa Katsuki's voice from the kitchen.

Mama Katsuki smiled with thousand watts of happiness. "Oh my Vicchan! Finally! Did you want our blessing? You have had it for nine years." There were little tears glistening in her eyes as she peered at him over the table.

"Really?" Victor felt his heart somersaulting in his chest. This family had become his, and they all seemed thrilled with the prospect. He had been nervous when he had devised this plan lying spread eagle over his bed. Now he felt ridiculous for worrying. "Are you sure he loves me back?" He glanced over his shoulder to see if Mari was still around to squash his fears.

"I'm sure," Mama Katsuki rose from the table, moving to a cabinet and opening a drawer. Lifting a notebook that Victor recognized as Yuuri's, he watched with intense interest as she flipped open the pages. Pushing it against his elbow, Mama Katsuki nodded down. "My Yuuri is subtle, almost subconscious in how he reveals his feelings. Sometimes, I don't think he knows he is doing it. See those characters in the margins?"

The breath caught heavily in his chest as Victor stared at the page. Japanese 101 had served him well and the characters spelling out his name were easy to pick out. Yuuri's characters were scrawled in tandem, everywhere Victor's appeared. In between them was a very distinct printing of "love."

Swallowing hard, Victor's shaking fingers moved to lift the front cover of the notepad. The word "sociology" was printed in Yuuri's careful handwriting on the red front cover.

"I found this book a year ago when I was cleaning out Yuuri's room," Mama Katsuki placed a gentle hand on Victor's shoulder. "I opened it out of curiosity to see which language Yuuri had used to take notes. When I found this, I realized that my boy had loved his best friend from the beginning, and that Yuuri probably didn't even know it or pretended not to." Sighing, she flipped to another page with a quick doodle of Victor with a thought bubble saying "I'm beautiful and smart, but my arguments suck butt." She chuckled at this one, shaking her head at her son's crudeness. "You can have this," she pushed the book toward Victor, "as long as you tell him how you feel. You know how our Yuuri is." Standing, Mama Katsuki kissed Victor gently on the top of his head. "Don't let stupidity ruin something so wonderful. For smart boys, you two really are clueless."

Victor heard her go, unable to form a response as he continued to stare at the notebook in his hands, his breakfast forgotten in front of him. His own sociology notebook had been red that year, and somewhere in the margins, jotted in Russian were similar declarations. At that time it was more of a fleeting thought, an automatic assumption that the excitement he felt around Yuuri had to be love. But Yuuri had taught Victor about friendship, and those fleeting thoughts had become a memory replaced by a relationship far more important. Above all else, Yuuri was his best friend.

Friendship with trust, respect, laughter, and teasing. Friendship filled with unconditional support and memories spanning nearly a decade. Friendship that could easily be the foundation for even more.

Pulling his phone from his pocket, Victor moved to open Yuuri's contact when he noticed the time. It was Tuesday and Yuuri was most likely at breakfast with Seung-gil. Victor wanted to say a lot of things, and none of them while any part of the Seung-gil/Phichit duo could listen in. He loved the other half of his best friends, but this was a private conversation for him and Yuuri alone. Sighing, he set his phone face down on the table, reserving himself to waiting until after court that afternoon.

Another hand, stronger and rougher this time, landed on Victor's shoulder. Looking up, he found Papa Katsuki grinning down at him. "How much time do you have today, Vicchan?"

That question meant chores, but Victor didn't mind. "I have several hours before I have to be in court. Makka is here with me and my suit is in the car. If I can shower before I leave, I'm all yours for two hours." Victor couldn't help his smile. He loved being a part of this family, even when it meant sweating his ass off on his free morning.

"Great!" Papa Katsuki hauled Victor from his seat. "I'll pack your breakfast up so you can take it with you and make a lunch for you when you head out. There is some brush gathered by spring three. Grab the truck keys and clear it out for me, would you?" Gathering the plate and mug from the table Papa Katsuki headed for the kitchen. "I'm happy for you two," he said quietly before disappearing behind the door.

Heading for the door, Victor slipped his shoes back on his feet and grabbed the truck keys along with a hand radio from the charger. Jogging out of the front door, he called for Makkachin and let her jump in the passenger seat.

In the middle of the dining room table, Victor's forgotten cell phone pinged with a new voicemail.

* * *

"Goodbye, Vicchan," Yuuri cooed, letting his poodle crawl all over him. "Be good for Phichit and Seung-gil." He snuggled the ball of brown fur close to his face, planting tiny kisses over the wiggling body. Seung-gil would spoil Vicchan and Yuuri knew that, but it was still hard to say goodbye even if it was only for a couple of days.

"No call back?" Seung-gil asked for the tenth time, making Yuuri tense. "Maybe he is caught up in trial prep."

Yuuri pushed from the ground and shook his head. "JJ's case is easy and I doubt Victor has even given it much thought. Thanks for trying though." There was bubble of dread in Yuuri's stomach again and he wanted to be in his car alone in case it burst.

"He'll call," Seung-gil stepped forward and gave Yuuri a swift hug. "Call me if you need to. Drive safe." With a wave, Seung-gil was heading down the sidewalk, both dogs prancing in his wake.

Throwing himself in the car, Yuuri set the GPS to the address of the hotel and cranked his stereo. He was going to drive and sing, with no thinking allowed for the next hour.

* * *

By the time Yuuri had reached the hotel, it was already buzzing with lawyers. They were easy to pick out among the crowd, most of them sporting some air of superiority. This conference had seemed like a valuable learning experience when he had booked it months ago, but now it seemed like a trap of awkward inconvenience.

Easing his car into the valet line, Yuuri stepped out to hand the keys over to the cheerful boy who greeted him at his door. Popping the trunk, Yuuri collected his belongings and made his way through the throng of people to the front desk. He was waiting for the clerk to produce his room key when a familiar voice assaulted his ears.

"Yuuri Katsuki," it drawled, coming up directly behind his ear. "Well, this conference certainly became more interesting."

Not redirecting his gaze from the alarmed look of the clerk in front of him, Yuuri sighed, "hi Chris, I didn't know you were coming." He instantly regretted his choice of words.

"Only for you, handsome," Chris leaned his body against the counter attempting to break Yuuri's sightline. "After you slaughtered Dave in that Wetzel case, the bossman negotiated a place for six of us at this thing. Apparently it takes six guys to take down the power that is Yuuri Katsuki." Chris winked with his own innuendo and Yuuri managed to not roll his eyes. "What room are you in?"

"603," chirped the clerk with her own wink in Yuuri's direction. He wasn't sure if she was being helpful or evil so he withheld his urge to scream.

"Maybe you can give me a tour later," Chris pushed from the counter and pinched Yuuri's butt. "I'll see you at check-in."

Letting his breath heave from him, Yuuri glanced at the clerk. "I bumped you up to a suite. They are the only other rooms available because of the conference, but you need an active room key to scan onto the floor. I waived the additional cost."

Yuuri never hugged strangers, but he wanted to hug this one. Carefully slipping a fifty dollar bill from his wallet, he handed it to her in exchange for his key. "Thank you, you have no idea." He smiled when she laughed, and something told him that maybe she had more than an idea. Thanking her again, he headed toward the elevators to inspect his new room.

* * *

Sweat covered every inch of Victor's body as he threw the last of the brush into the chipper. Collecting the bucket, he dragged it to the bonfire, adding the chips to the bottom of the fire bed. Makkachin, who was still dripping wet from her ill-advised dip into the hot spring, ran off in search of more children's faces to lick.

Two hours had passed quickly with the struggle to cut and collect the brush from around the hot spring. Victor had leaves in his hair and scratches on his arms along with a bizarre cramp in his left butt cheek. He also had a plan.

After court, he was going to track Yuuri down, utilizing Phichit and Seung-gil if he had to. He was going to tell Yuuri that he hadn't stopped thinking about Friday night. He was going to give Yuuri a thousand examples of all the times Victor had fallen in love with Yuuri over nine years. During his drive down from the spring, he had carefully constructed an argument as to why they should be together. If he approached the conversation like a classroom debate, he knew he could get Yuuri's perpetually stubborn ass to listen. He only had to get Yuuri in front of him and talk until Yuuri ran out of counterpoints.

Bursting into the Katsuki house, Victor threw off his shoes, tossing them haphazardly on the rack. His suit dangled over his arm with clean undergarments swinging from a bag in his right hand as he took the stairs two-by-two to the bathroom that was Yuuri's in his youth. Stripping off his sweat drenched clothes, Victor heaved his body into the shower, scrubbing every inch of dirt off of his skin.

He wanted to think and plan more. He wanted time to practice his speech to Yuuri and make sure it was flawless. Instead he was rushing through a mildly cold shower, trying to remind himself of the asinine facts of Jean's case. Something about trying to rescue his mom or girlfriend and not realizing he had consumed more than the legal limit. Sounded stupid, but easy. Even if the man had kissed Yuuri and could happily go to jail as far as Victor was concerned, there would be no reason that Jean would receive any level of conviction that day.

Snagging a clean towel from the small rack, Victor hurriedly toweled himself dry and tucked himself carefully into his suit. Pulling the hair brush from the bag, he shoved his messy clothes into their place, tossing his deodorant and cologne in after. Dragging the bristles through his tangled hair, Victor looked at himself in the mirror.

 _Was love sickness a thing?_ He pondered the possibility as he looked at the tired purplish tint under his eyes. Maybe once he told Yuuri how he felt, and they were together, living in Victor's house with a wedding scheduled, Victor would finally be cured. Internally he chastised himself for the amount of step skipping he was doing. Out loud, he looked his reflection over and said "go get him." He was thankful no one else was around to hear his pathetic pep talk.

Gathering his things, Victor tidied up the bathroom and jogged down the stairs. Mama Katsuki was standing by the door, his dirty boots wrapped carefully in a plastic bag and a paper bag smelling of delicious food waiting for him. "You always look so handsome in a suit, my Vicchan." She reached up to straighten his tie. "Good luck today, why don't you leave Makkachin with us for the night? She is very happy with the guests right now and I will give her a bath later."

Leaning down, Victor accepted the offered hug, the peck of a kiss to his cheek and the bundle of boots and food. "Alright, if she is having fun, I will leave her. I'm running late as is, so that will mean I can go straight to court. Thanks, Mama." Victor placed his own kiss against Mama Katsuki's warm cheek. Opening the door, he headed for his car, turning to wave as he slid into his driver's seat.

"Love you, my Vicchan!" Mama Katsuki called from the porch.

"Love you too!" he yelled back with a blown kiss. With a much lighter heart, Victor headed back down the sloping driveway.

* * *

Everything was loud. There were so many people talking over each other that Yuuri felt his brain click off from over-stimulation. He felt uncomfortably warm in his suit and eager to have the first speaker of the day call the room to order. Listening and taking notes was a far more desirable activity than the networking that everyone else seemed to be after.

Yuuri had managed to avoid most of the familiar faces by hanging out in his oversized room. There was a king sized bed, a small living room area and a full kitchen in his suite. The bathroom had a glass shower with multiple shower heads and a bathtub big enough for two people. His thoughts had briefly gone south at the idea of Victor sharing the space with him, and Yuuri had spent a half hour in the shower relieving the pressure in his groin.

His phone had remained silent for the entire drive, except a text from Mari with nothing but a bunch of grinning emojis. He had no idea what his sister was up to and decided to ignore it. Yuuri couldn't ignore the lack of response from Victor. The silence was slowly murdering his heart.

Finding a seat near the front of the banquet hall serving as the main room for the conference, Yuuri dropped his laptop bag onto the floor and retrieved a pad and a pen. As the first speaker of the event stomped over the stage, Yuuri let out a pathetic sigh and let his phone drop to the bottom of his bag.

* * *

Victor had always prided himself on being able to represent anyone, but sitting next to the man who had kissed Yuuri only five days prior was testing this confidence. Jean was manspreading all over the courtroom bench, the blue pants of his suit barely containing the obscene spread of his thighs. As Victor attempted to explain what was going to happen, he was continually distracted by JJ's constant flipping of the end of a very red tie. Victor's irritation level was exponentially growing and he rubbed his forehead to relieve some of the building tension. "Do you understand everything I have said?" Anyone near them would have heard the level of disdain leaking through Victor's question, but Jean seemed unbothered by it.

"You don't remember me, do you?" Jean suddenly sat up, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees.

Taking a deep breath, Victor tried to shove away his annoyance at being ignored. "Why should I remember you?"

Jean's face was a mixture of offended and amused. "I dated the guy you are in love with. And you went all macho crazy. Karaoke for your cheerful friend's birthday. You told Yuuri I wasn't good enough for him." Jean twisted and threw an arm over the bench behind Victor. "Ringing any bells yet?"

It clicked. Yuuri dragging the tall man with a severe undercut into the bar while Phichit was singing to Seung-gil. Jean's arms wrapping around Yuuri, practically pulling Yuuri into his lap. Victor's own boyfriend asking what had gotten into him as Victor attempted to put Jean in his place for several hours straight. A conversation where Yuuri's eyes looked like pools of challenge and a hint of something else. A screaming match outside of the bar between Yuuri and Jean, words unable to be heard from Victor's position behind the glass, but the anger had come all the same. His boyfriend had broken up with him that night too, claims of cheating being thrown like pointed knives over his vanishing shoulder.

A couch. A whispered set of two words, one that Victor had been convinced were a dream.

It was all there, the entire night that he had only remembered in odd fragments, mostly due to the birthday shots Phichit had forced on them. He wasn't cheating on his boyfriend, but his heart had belonged to Yuuri, even then.

The bailiff entered the courtroom stealing Victor's opportunity to respond. Jean's smug huff from next to him, told Victor he probably didn't need to.

* * *

The case had taken exactly twenty-two minutes to try. Victor and Jean walked out, Jean with a PBJ for his first offense and waiver of half of the court costs. It was a successful afternoon and Victor felt relieved that it was over. Stepping into the courthouse hallway, he turned to review with result with Jean.

"Are you with him or not?" Jean stood with his hands on his hips, facing Victor.

It wasn't until they were standing directly in front of each other that Victor registered Jean's physical size. Even with Jean's attempts to look intimidating, Victor wasn't buying it. He had seen the nervous tremble of Jean's hands when they approached the defense table and the continuous bob of Jean's Adam's apple in his throat. "Why is that any of your business?" Victor crossed his arms over his chest, setting his face to an expression of aloof impatience.

"Maybe it isn't," Jean dropped his hands, but not his volume. "But I fell fast for him, and even if I never registered on the great Victor Nikiforov radar, Yuuri was a major point on mine. And it fell apart because of you."

"I don't see how I had anything to do with you screaming at him outside of a bar." Except Victor did, because Yuuri's voice was ringing in his head talking about Jean accusing Yuuri of being in love with a friend. _Well, shit_ , Victor cursed internally.

"You prissy bastard," Jean rolled his eyes, "I don't know if it is an act or what, but whatever Yuuri sees in you, you should feel lucky. You're a great attorney, but this…" Jean waved a hand at Victor, "this is an act. And a bad one. Hopefully he knows a better side of you." Turning away, Jean started down the hall before pausing. "I'm getting married, you know." His voice was quieter now as he looked over his shoulder at Victor. "She is great. But Yuuri will always be my one that got away. Maybe don't be such a dickhead and repeat my mistakes. I'll see you next week." With that, Jean exited the hallway leaving a stunned Victor surrounded by his colleagues.

* * *

The pinging noises from Yuuri's cell phone had him digging into the bottom of his bag to silence the phone. The first speaker had finally exited the podium and all around him, attorneys were mingling and deciding on their next plan. Yuuri had another instructional he wanted to attend and then his first day of the conference would reach a conclusion. He intended to skip the social events at the hotel's bar that night and sulk in his ridiculously sized room instead.

Stepping into an empty corridor, Yuuri unlocked his phone with a hopeful sting in his heart. Seeing the texts from Yuri and still nothing from Victor, he felt the hope dissolve. Opening the message anyway, he first read the text saying that court was boring without Yuuri. He let himself feel a little boosted from this compliment and scrolled to Yuri's next text. It said Yuri was attaching a video, and to watch closely.

Shoving a blind hand into the small pocket of his bag, Yuuri studied the stilled frame of what looked like JJ and Victor. JJ was standing tall with his hands braced on his hips and Victor had his patented professional-yet-bored stance going. There really wasn't a way that anything good was going to come out of the video, but Yuuri shoved his earbuds in anyway. Pressing play, he watched the scene unfold at the shaky filming hands of Yuri.

He watched it three times before realizing he was late for his intended instructional. Hastily shoving his phone into his pocket, Yuuri jogged down the hall to the crowded room. He found a seat in the back and immediately lost focus on the room.

Not all of what JJ had said was clear, but Yuuri knew that he owed the other man an apology. A proper one that came with the acknowledgement that JJ had been right. He would think on the details later, but he was resolved to letting JJ have closure, and not the kind that came from a screaming match outside of a bar.

For Victor's part, he had looked mostly stunned. It bothered Yuuri that Victor hadn't admitted his feelings. He could have shut JJ's rant down if Victor had lied about them being together. Instead Victor had made it difficult, which seemed to only antagonize JJ.

His mind was going to circle on the same topics forever and Yuuri was beginning to annoy himself about the matter. Forcing it away while attempting to accept his fate of limbo, he tried to focus on the oldest attorney to still exist droning on about personal injury law at the front of the classroom.

* * *

The door to Phichit's office banged against the wall as Victor threw it open. Watching Phichit grab the sides of his desk to keep from toppling back in surprise, Victor continued to storm into the room. "I can't find my phone!" Victor waved the back of food packed by Yuuri's parents in wild circles. "I can't find my phone… I can't find Yuuri… I can't do anything!" Tossing the bag of food onto Phichit's desk, Victor flopped down onto the floor while smacking a hand to his forehead.

He looked up as Phichit moved to stand over him. "Well, you look useless currently," Phichit laughed, leaning back against his desk with his hands in his pockets. "Want to try again without the drama?"

"No, I do not!" Victor let his arm drop to the floor and stared at the ceiling. "Where is he, Phichit? Is he hiding from me?" Whining as Phichit tapped against his ribs with a foot, Victor flung out a hand to smack at Phichit's legs.

Drawing his leg back, Phichit threw up his hands in frustration. "Yes, Victor, this is an elaborate game of hide-and-seek and our friend is besting you in it." Plopping down in his desk chair, Phichit started tapping on his keyboard.

"Not helpful," Victor whined from his place on the floor.

"Hey, hi, my name is Phichit and my law partner is there for the conference. Yuuri Katsuki. He isn't answering his phone and I need to leave him a direct message. Which room is he in?" Phichit paused and scribbled on a post-it note. "Thank you! Yes a patch through would be great! Have a wonderful evening!" Victor didn't bother lifting himself from the floor, letting the confusion hang out with him like an old friend. "Hey, Yuuri! It's Phichit. Just making sure you got there okay. Have fun tonight!"

Victor heard the click of the phone. "Where is he?"

Phichit squatted down by Victor and slapped a post-it note directly to Victor's forehead. "He's at that conference. Currently adhered to your expansive head space is the address to the hotel and his room number. What are you going to do about it?"

Reaching up, Victor pulled the paper from his head, wincing as strands of hair were pulled. He held it with both hands, glancing to Phichit at his side. "I'm going to go get him." Jumping from the floor, Victor moved for the door. "You can have that food if you want! Papa Katsuki made it." He was halfway to his car when Phichit caught up to him.

"Your phone," Phichit pressed it into Victor's hand. "It was in the bag. And it looks like you have a voicemail." Winking Phichit headed back toward the office, yelling "good luck!" over his shoulder.

Victor slid into his car turning it on so he could play Yuuri's voicemail over the Bluetooth speakers. As Yuuri's voice filled Victor's car, Victor felt his grin break across his face. No more hesitating, it was time to chase down his future.

* * *

Yuuri threw his laptop bag unto the ground and tossed his suit pieces over the table in the entryway of his suite. Continuing to strip as he made his way through the lavish room, he knelt naked by his suitcase to pull out his comfiest pair of sweats and Victor's red hoodie. Slipping them over his body, he sighed in the soft relief of loose-fitting clothing.

Everyone else was probably in their rooms, changing for a night of drinking and chaos, but Yuuri wanted room service, a comfy bed, and lots of mind-numbing television. He still hadn't heard from Victor, and tried to remove the obsession from his brain as he plucked the ice bucket from the counter next to the sink. Padding down the hallway, he retrieved ice and a few sodas for himself from the vending machine.

His floor was quiet and he found it both peaceful and restless. Part of him wanted the distraction of noise, while the other half of him wanted to sink into sullen silence.

Pushing back into the hotel room, he heard his cell phone ringing from his charger. Diving to grab it, he didn't look at the caller ID before answering. "Yuuri Katsuki." He used his business greeting just in case.

"Yuuri, sweetheart, it's mom."

Yanking his phone from the charger, Yuuri managed to suppress his need to sigh with disappointment. He adored his mother, but her voice was not the one he wanted to hear right now. "Hi, Mom," Yuuri replied, moving back toward the kitchen to open his soda and pour it over ice in a glass.

"How is the conference going? You'll be home before Sunday, right?"

Yuuri leaned against the counter and sipped his drink. "Conference is fine, lots of people, it is over tomorrow so I will definitely be there on Sunday." Swirling his drink, Yuuri listened to his mother chatter at his father about onions for a minute.

"Well…" his mom hesitated and Yuuri felt the prickle of apprehension run down his spine. "That very nice man from last Sunday would like to come for dinner again. I was hoping I could tell him yes…"

Feeling his resistance snap, Yuuri began to pace.

* * *

The drive to the hotel took Victor well over two hours. During that time, he screamed profanities at will and rehearsed every important point he needed to make. He had scanned the radio and purposely listened to nothing but love songs. He was ready.

Unfortunately, the clerk at the front desk of the hotel seemed to have other ideas. Victor had tried to get to Yuuri's room, only to discover that the top two floors required card access. Returning to the lobby, he threw himself on the mercy of the clerk.

"Mr. Katsuki seems to be awfully popular," she chirped, examining Victor closely. "I have already had one request for a key card today."

He didn't like the sound of that. Leaning over the counter, Victor let all of his drama loose. "I don't know who asked for his key card, but Yuuri is my law partner and my best friend of nine years. Earlier today, our other best friend and partner called to get his room number for me. I am here to profess my love for him. Can you please help me with that?" Victor clapped his hands together in dramatic plea, letting his bottom lip jut out and his eyes open to saucers.

Ten minutes later, he was standing in front of Yuuri's hotel room door. He could hear Yuuri's irritated voice filtering through the room door.

"Mom! I am not going to go out with that guy!"

There was venom in Yuuri's voice, a tone that made Victor laugh. It appeared that Mama Katsuki was still playing her matchmaker game and Victor could easily imagine Yuuri's irritated huffs of breath fogging up his glasses. Leaning closer to the door, Victor pressed his ear toward the seam trying to make out the one side of the argument he could hear.

"Because mom, he was boring! We have nothing in common and you didn't even ask me if I want or need to be set up with someone!"

Victor heard the silence, assuming that Yuuri was listening to his mother on the other end of a telephone. He shouldn't spy, but part of him wanted to hear the way the conversation was headed. It was slightly amusing to be on this end of it, especially since he now understood Mama Katsuki's real intentions.

"Who says I don't? You never asked me before you brought that guy over." More silence. "I'm not saying that I do! But I might! It's complicated! I have to go, mom."

The swelling in Victor's chest held a similar feeling to seeing Yuuri's picture in Victor's hoodie on Saturday morning. He was jumping to conclusions about Yuuri's statements, and he didn't care. Victor wanted to believe that he was the complication. He wanted to believe it so badly that all of his sound arguments began slipping from his mind. Before Victor could stop himself, he was knocking loudly on the door.

Out of frustration, Yuuri didn't bother to look out of the peephole prior to throwing the door open. "Oh good, you are not a serial killer." Yuuri's tone was deadpan and made Victor hesitate.

"Last time I checked, no I wasn't," Victor followed Yuuri into the hotel, noting the nervous twitch of Yuuri's hands and letting it propel him on, "but a lot could have changed in five days."

Yuuri stopped moving but didn't turn around. "I called you hours ago! And you have been missing in action as much as I have!" He finally turned, staring at Victor and feeling the wobble of his heart. They hadn't been in the same room since Yuuri had fled from Victor's bed. He remembered Victor's sleeping face. He remembered the way Victor looked underneath him. In a flash, Yuuri remembered every important moment over a course of nine years.

Victor saw the hoodie, hanging over Yuuri's body. It was the same one Victor had handed him on Friday night and the one in the picture from Saturday. It bore the name of their joint university and the memories flooded into Victor's mind of everything they had been to each other since the first moment in sociology class. Sparing partners, study buddies, law partners, best friends, and lovers. All of those things he had with Yuuri. All of those things made him love Yuuri even more.

For a moment they stood, hands at their sides looking at each other. Neither moved, neither spoke, they simply stood.

"Why did you leave?" Victor asked. He didn't look away from Yuuri, terrified that if he dropped his eyes for a second, Yuuri would be gone again.

Yuuri played with the string on the red hoodie, now looking anywhere but Victor's face. "Because I'm an idiot," Yuuri said without emotion. He let his brown eyes meet the wide blue ones trained on his face, "I woke up, your arms were around me and at some point, I had turned to cuddle into you. Me!" Yuuri's shout made Victor jump. "Me, of all people, subconsciously cuddling another person."

Moving to his right, Victor leaned on the back of the couch, crossing his arms without speaking. His heart felt so full in his chest, it was strangling Victor's ability to respond. Yuuri wasn't a cuddly person, and Victor always assumed that Yuuri dealt with Victor's physical tendencies out of pity. The possibility that Yuuri wanted all of those cuddles, enjoyed them even, was inflating Victor's heart to impossible widths.

"I felt comfortable," Yuuri whispered to his feet, "safe. And then JJ's voice showed up in my head again and my mind started rambling so I left." There was more to it. The memory of JJ's words had played a huge part in why he had left on Friday, but so had nine years of friendship. If he had ever considered being with Victor, even in small moments of weakness, he had shoved it away. He hadn't been willing to ruin the most important relationship in his life. Now, standing across from Victor, it seemed stupid. Yuuri wanted to cross the room and take a chance, but his feet remained rooted to the floor.

Victor's growing happiness faltered. The memory of Jean's statements in the crowded hallway flushing his cheeks. "What do you mean by JJ's voice?" It was selfish to make Yuuri say it. Victor knew it, but he couldn't stop from pushing. He wanted to sprint across the room, grab Yuuri and never let him go. First, he had to know that Yuuri wanted the same thing.

Flushing, Yuuri realized he had backed himself into a literal and figurative corner, as he had moved his anxious body back against the door to the balcony. "I told you, JJ broke it off with me, because he claimed I was in love with someone else." Hands smacking his hips as they dropped to Yuuri's side, he looked up to once again meet Victor's eyes, "he said I was in love with you."

Though Victor acknowledged that it would be inappropriate for him to backflip, and that he had no idea how to backflip, his urge to do so was very strong in that moment. Composing himself, Victor pushed off the couch, "in love with me, huh?" He began a slow path toward where Yuuri was positioned, becoming flatter to the door by the second.

"What does he know?" Yuuri tried to backtrack. Of all the ways to tell Victor his feelings, Yuuri had to pick the one that involved JJ. He was a hopeless mess, and his body was beginning to shake with nerves as Victor approached him.

Victor nodded as he crossed the room, smiling as he watched the nerves cause Yuuri's hands to flutter about. "So, you're not in love with me?" There was a burning need to hear Yuuri say the words. All of the signs were there, and Victor knew that it would be enough, but he wanted to know for sure. After all the waiting, all the dissection of their entire friendship, Victor wanted to be sure.

Yuuri wouldn't look at him. For the first time, he was devoid of snappy comebacks and sarcastic comments. All of the confidence he had in court had abandoned him and the stream of curse words passing through his brain at Victor's impending closeness weren't helping. Every step closer, Yuuri felt his walls collapsing. "I mean," the words were there, trapped behind his train wreck of a brain. "Why do you care? It isn't like you are in love with me?" It came out as a question with the edge of challenge to it. Yuuri internally face-palmed himself for again bringing the fight into a potential confession.

Taking a final step, Victor leaned into Yuuri. He was acutely aware of how strong Yuuri was and that Victor was completely vulnerable if Yuuri chose to knee his way out of the closeness. Relying on his trust of Yuuri, Victor ran his fingertips down the defiant jaw, tipping Yuuri's chin up to look at him. "What if I am?"

"Why?" Yuuri questioned, the defiance still present but he could hear the need for reassurance in his own voice. "Because we had sex? One round of good sex and you're in love? I never pegged you for being _that_ easy." Victor's chest was flush against his own and Yuuri couldn't think. He immediately reverted back to what was comfortable, the push and pull of their never-ending bickering. Seeing the flash in Victor's eyes, Yuuri smirked, relaxing back against the glass. Maybe he couldn't come out and say the words, but he could fight them out of Victor.

If Yuuri wanted a fight, Victor planned to give him one. In the last five days he had come to realize that he would happily fight with Yuuri and love Yuuri in equal measures for the rest of their lives, if only Yuuri would let him. "I would evaluate the sex more along the lines of great, mind-blowing even." Dipping his head, Victor teased past Yuuri's lips with his own and continuing until he could run a trial of barely-there kisses over Yuuri's neck. The small moan that escaped his best friend spurred Victor on. "And you know that isn't it."

He trailed across Yuuri's ear, skimming his jawline as Victor moved to the other side. "You know you are brilliant," he deepened his angle on Yuuri's neck feeling Yuuri's body begin to relax, "you are beautiful," Victor snaked his hands under his hoodie on Yuuri's body, feeling the skin underneath, "and you are one hell of a fighter." In a swift motion, he pulled the hoodie over Yuuri's head, groaning when he discovered the lack of layers underneath. "You're a thief, too, by the way, I'm going to want that back." Victor grinned, nipping at Yuuri's collar bone.

A sly smile appeared on Yuuri's face. This he could do. The fight and the tease, the affection and the kind words, somehow it seemed to be a unique balance all of their own. Without warning, he pushed Victor backwards redirecting him to shove him onto the couch. Straddling him, Yuuri yanked Victor's shirt over his head. As skin met skin, Yuuri sighed against Victor's shoulder. Somehow, this already felt like home to him. Lifting his lips to Victor's ear Yuuri whispered, "there is not a chance you are getting that hoodie back." Yuuri nipped at Victor's ear, laughing as Victor's chest rumbled against him.

Victor kissed Yuuri's shoulder, and pulled back. "If you take the hoodie, you have to keep the heart that comes with it." Victor could feel Yuuri's heartbeat in his wrist, releasing his hold to place a flat palm on Yuuri's chest. "I'm a mess, you know that," Victor let his fingers trail down Yuuri's other arm to link their hands together. "But you have stuck with me through every failed relationship and every idiotic decision I have ever made. If you'll have me, I want to be your mess."

"I'm no better," Yuuri sighed, sitting fully back on Victor's legs. Bringing their joined hands together, Yuuri pressed a kiss to Victor's knuckles. "I am an actual human disaster sometimes." He watched as Victor pulled their joined hands back to his own lips. Yuuri felt Victor's other hand drop to his hip. Watching his best friend closely, Yuuri held his breath.

"There is only one choice as I see it," Victor dropped Yuuri's hand. Placing a gentle hand against Yuuri's cheek, Victor let himself get swept up in the moment. All of his valid points about the strength of their relationship were forgotten. The reasons why they should be together were floating all around them, their itemization unneeded. Sitting here together, Victor realized, as long as it was Yuuri, the rest really didn't matter. Pressing forward, Victor leaned his forehead against Yuuri's. "Let's be a disaster together then, shall we? Because I don't know how to live without my best friend, and it's really convenient that my best friend also happens to be the person I'm in love with." Victor felt the words as he spoke, hearing the hitch in his own voice.

"This could end badly," Yuuri whispered, needing to exhaust every worry before he could truly accept the offer being given to him.

"Or, it could never end at all," Victor kissed Yuuri's forehead and waited for the next counterpoint. He was ready to answer anything Yuuri could throw at him and he was willing to spend the entire night arguing away all of Yuuri's doubts.

"I like that idea," Yuuri wrapped his arms around Victor's shoulders. "You win your argument, counselor." He burst into laughter as Victor cheered below him. "Hey!" Yuuri sat back again, grinning at Victor. "You finally have one for the win column on your board!" Peals of laughter filled the hotel suite as Victor tackled Yuuri onto the couch.

"I can do this, you know," Victor traced a finger down Yuuri's naked side, poking Yuuri in the ribs to make him squirm. "I could banter with you for the rest of our lives." Staring down at Yuuri, Victor realized how true it was.

"Good," Yuuri laced his fingers into Victor's hair, "just because I love you, doesn't mean I plan to take it easy on you." He reached up to kiss Victor when Victor jerked away. Confused, Yuuri let his head fall back.

"Say it again," Victor whispered, leaning closer.

"Good," Yuuri teased, kissing Victor's nose.

"Yuuri…" Victor threatened, reaching down to squeeze Yuuri's ticklish side. "Say it again," Victor brushed his lips over Yuuri's, "please?"

"Jury's in. I love you," Yuuri laughed, "you big idiot." He laughed harder as Victor squeezed his sides again. Sighing, when Victor finally relinquished his playful assault, Yuuri looked up at his best friend and smiled. Without any further hesitation, he pulled Victor down to seal the verdict with a kiss.


	5. Chapter 5

**Day 1 of their relationship... It's going to get explicit...**

 **If you want to skip the explicit part, it begins with the word "Carefully" and ends with the word "completion." It should be noted that it is me writing this, so the "explicit" while explicit does concentrate more on feelings (because FEELINGS).**

 **The amazing cover photo for this was designed by getawaymachine on Tumblr! If you want to scream about how beautiful it is or anything related to this story please come find me on Tumblr at n3rdlif343va**

 **What is chapter balance anyway? I once saw someone in discord say that 1,000 words of smut is like 2,500 regular story words... so let's go with that math LOL I wanted to give them a day to themselves and let the reactions of everyone else come next chapter :)**

* * *

Consciousness trickled in like brewing coffee dripping into a pot. The pillow beneath Victor's head was luxuriously plump and the sheets over his naked skin were soft and warm. His muscles ached with the remainder of his night and he grinned as he sleepily rolled over to reach for Yuuri. His arm collided with an empty mattress causing Victor shoot upright, looking around the room with a look of betrayal.

"The fuck, man!" Victor shouted into the empty space, slapping the bed with his palm.

Their night had been perfect. They had ordered ridiculously expensive room service with a bottle of wine and had sat cross-legged in the middle of the king sized bed with a movie running in the background. Consuming every bite of food and every drop of wine, they laughed their way through their meal, enjoying being in the same room again. Victor had reminisced about all their shared meals the year they were roommates, while Yuuri had taken loving digs at Victor's first efforts to learn to cook. Replacing their apartment stove had been expensive, but in the end Victor had learned to hold his own in the kitchen.

Dropping back on the pillow, Victor moaned with the slight ache in the back of his thighs. Yuuri had looked so sweet padding to the door to leave the tray in the hall that Victor leapt from the bed, chasing him down to lift him and pin him against the wall. Everything had escalated from there, both of them on the slight edge of tipsy and once again finding themselves completely without inhibitions.

It had been different though. Still wrecked with nearly a decade of desire pent up between them, they had hastened to lose their clothes, but then slowed the pace to a gentle crawl. Remembering the way Yuuri looked up at him as Victor took his time reconnecting their bodies had Victor rolling over to groan into his pillow.

"Because that asshole disappeared again!" His frustrations were only shared with the dust bunnies that continued to drift in the small rays of sun peeking through the curtains. Blindly Victor slapped out at the table next to him, not noticing the piece of paper with Yuuri's handwriting that he knocked on the ground. Angrily typing two words into his text stream with Yuuri, Victor stomped off to the bathroom to drown his head in the hotel shower.

* * *

A conference room full of people who wanted to ask one thousand questions was Yuuri's literal definition of hell. Adding to the insane levels of torture he had been experiencing since eight a.m. was that his boyfriend, of less than twelve hours, was lying naked in the hotel bed upstairs. Victor's calendar was completely free through Friday morning, and Yuuri was anxiously awaiting confirmation that Victor would be willing to stay with him through the last night in the room.

It had taken four tries to get the wording right on his note. He had snuck the rough drafts into his briefcase and brought them downstairs with him so Victor wouldn't find them. Yuuri had felt silly, writing the note and signing it 'with love' but he knew that was the type of simple romantic gesture Victor craved in a relationship. He had also ordered room service and paid the kitchen an extra five dollars to put a rose on the tray. Before he had left, dressed in his suit and sneaking a small kiss onto Victor's still sleeping forehead, Yuuri had made sure the tray was set up on the table with another hand written note. For over nine years, Yuuri had listened to all the things that Victor's boyfriends had done wrong, and Yuuri was determined to be the one that broke the mold.

Gritting his teeth as another young and overly peppy attorney asked the ancient judge at the front of the room a question that could be found in any first year textbook, Yuuri attempted to discreetly pull his phone from his bag. Unlocking it, he made a small squeaking noise at Victor's text.

"You asshole!" It read, accented with an exclamation point and several angry emojis.

Chuckling to himself, Yuuri decided that if Victor wanted to be playful and teasing about his romantic gestures that Yuuri could definitely join in on the game. "Your* asshole," he corrected, cupping his phone close to his chest so no one around him could see what he was typing, "is exactly what I plan to eat for lunch."

Flipping his phone over in his lap, Yuuri's face burned as he stared the keynote speaker. Never in his life had Yuuri ever sent a text like that, usually reserving any sort of sexual humor for when they were all together and fairly drunk. Victor liked texts like that, he reminded himself, remembering Victor complaining about the lack of sexual tension between him and what's-his-name since the guy would never engage in any verbal foreplay. Yuuri had the receipts, itemizing everything Victor could ever want in a relationship, and he was attempting to fulfill them despite the sheer terror clamping down tighter in his chest with every passing minute.

* * *

Walking from the bathroom with his towel slung low on his hips and his damp hair banging at the back of his neck, Victor noted the green blinking light on his phone and picked it up. He purposely slowed his actions, wanting to hopefully extend Yuuri's potential distress a little longer. If his supposed best friend and boyfriend was going to abandon him naked in bed every morning, this relationship was not going to last very long. Opening his messaging app, Victor swiped to Yuuri's text notification.

His phone hit the ground with a thud. Stunned, Victor peered down at the floor only to realize that his sightline was being impaired by his own raging hard-on. Yuuri Katsuki, Mr. Don't-Put-Anything-In-a-Text-Message-That-You-Don't-Want-Read-In-Court, had offered to eat Victor's ass. In writing. At eleven o'clock in the morning.

Plunking down in the middle of the floor, Victor tried to catch his breath. He wanted to be mad at Yuuri for leaving him hanging, but his entire body was reeling from the promise of Yuuri's words. Swallowing hard, he retrieved his phone from the ground. "Don't be turning me on when I am mad at you!" To emphasize his point, and to get even, Victor took a well-angled shot of his towel covered erection, immediately hitting send.

* * *

The phone in Yuuri's lap vibrated, making him shift in his seat from the sudden sensation. Tapping on Victor's message, Yuuri quickly tossed his phone back on his lap. Counting to ten, Yuuri breathed through what the image had started to do to his body, and then stood up quietly, snagging his bag and heading toward the exit of the room.

A hand reached out and snagged his arm, causing Yuuri to stop and stumbled. "Where are you going?" Chris hissed, letting his eyes roam at eye level which was uncomfortably close to Yuuri's crotch.

"Work call," Yuuri hissed back, yanking his arm away from Chris and striding to the back of the room. He kept his back straight as he pushed through the doors, using the intimidating stance he reserved for court. Rounding the corner, he shoved into the bathroom and quickly hit the send button on his call.

"Victor Nikiforov." It was absolutely unnecessary, as Victor was holding his phone and could see that it was Yuuri calling, but he felt petty and went for business like.

"Mr. Nikiforov," Yuuri growled into the phone, "what the fuck." It wasn't even a question.

Chuckling into the phone, Victor examined his finger nails as he sat on the edge of the hotel room bed. "Like my picture, Mr. Katsuki? Serves you right for abandoning me this morning."

"Abandoning you?" Yuuri gawked at the phone, finally regaining his ability to speak. "Victor, I had to be at the conference events by eight thirty this morning. Didn't you get my note?"

Freezing, Victor caught a glimpse of his expression in the screen of the television. He only looked half as dumb as he felt. "The conference is still going on?" he asked meekly, peering around the room again looking for a sign of the alleged note.

"Do you ever check your calendar?" Yuuri leaned against the bathroom wall staring at his own reflection. His cheeks were pink and the dark circles had vanished from beneath his eyes. Sex and snuggling really did wonders for a person, he mused to himself as he heard Victor muttering into the phone. "I left you a note, under your cell phone. I guess that means you didn't see your breakfast either?" Everything was going exactly the opposite as Yuuri had planned.

Slinking around the side of the bed, Victor located the carefully written note lying against the table stand. Lifting it past the light, he could see the idents of Yuuri's handwriting and smiled to himself knowing there was at least one other draft of the note somewhere. He would look for that later. Holding his cell phone between his ear and his shoulder, he scanned the note and felt the smile creep over his face. "I have the note," he whispered, trying to preserve part of his dignity. "Where would I find breakfast?" His voice was sugary sweet as he posed the question through the phone's speaker.

"In the other room, on the table, you ridiculous asshat," Yuuri answered, without venom as his own smile was threatening to break his face in two. "Eat up, I'll be up around noon so I can do the same." The small hitch in Victor's breathing sent a thrill straight through to Yuuri's groin and he found himself counting backwards again, this time from a much higher number.

"You know you love me, you asshole," Victor padded out to find his breakfast, squeaking slightly when he discovered the single red rose. Lifting it to smell the petals, he ran it along his lips.

"I do, and I love your asshole," Yuuri scrunched his face, unbelieving that these were the words he was currently saying in public, "see you both soon." He ended the call before Victor could respond, breathing through his nose until his body was settled enough to rejoin the group of his peers.

Sitting on the chair closest to the tray, Victor lifted tops of containers to discover French toast, bacon and scrambled eggs. Yuuri had ordered Victor's favorite breakfast, along with tomato juice and coffee. As he sank his teeth into the first bite of syrupy bread, Victor began to formulate his own surprise.

* * *

Standing in the middle of the elevator, Yuuri rocked back and forth anxiously waiting for the gliding death box to reach the top floor. The keynote speaker had run fifteen minutes late and Yuuri had practically sprinted from his seat, completely ignoring the people who attempted to speak to him. Networking was more Phichit's and Victor's thing, so Yuuri brushed it off as not his problem, slamming his palm against the up button and forcing his way into the elevator before the doors were fully open.

He had reviewed every moment in his sexual history trying to identify a time when he ever felt so hungry for another person. The search had come up with nothing and Yuuri carefully closed all the files in his mind, showing them into a mental box and filing them away in storage. Victor was the only file that mattered now, and there were years and years of details that Yuuri couldn't wait to revisit.

The doors finally had mercy on him, opening onto the floor and letting Yuuri escape down the hall to the door of the suite. Swiping his card against the pad on the door, he anxiously rattled the door handle until he was allowed access. Pausing only to slip the Do Not Disturb sign onto the handle, Yuuri pushed the heavy door shut and secured all of the additional locks. He didn't want any interruptions and had already come to terms with the fact that he was probably going to skip the remaining portion of the conference. If it seemed important he would reach out to one of the people who had tried to suck up to him and retrieve the information from them.

Silence met him in the front room and Yuuri carefully placed his bag on the sofa before slipping off his suit jacket, shoes and tie. Carefully, he moved toward the bedroom in case Victor had decided to go back to sleep.

The click of the door alerted Victor to Yuuri's return and he had removed his towel to fling it across the room. Getting on the bed on his knees, Victor faced the door to the room, smirk parting his lips as his erection pointed in the same direction. He took an anticipatory breath as the sound of footsteps approached the door.

Quietly Yuuri turned the handle, opening the door and jumping backwards when he spotted Victor on the bed. "What the..?" he questioned, eyes taking in every naked detail as he stood frozen in the doorway.

"Yuuri!" Victor teased, extending his arm, "from now on I will be your boyfriend! And you can marathon eat my ass any time you want!" He wiggled his eyebrows in Yuuri's direction, before purposefully flexing his butt muscles.

"Fucking hell, Vitya," Yuuri sputtered, holding his chest. "I mean you look very edible…" trailing off, Yuuri took a step toward the bed. "Was that your point, counselor?" Tilting his head, Yuuri blatantly considered Victor's naked body. His heart was racing and the zipper of his dress pants was viciously digging into his own erection. For the first time, they were going take each other without an ounce of alcohol between them and Yuuri could feel the nerves beginning to set in. It felt different, knowing that it was no longer the heat of the moment that had carried them to this point, but several hours of rational thought. Yuuri found that there was nothing in the world that he wanted more than to make love to Victor completely sober and for as long as his body would last. "No answer?" The question was teasing as Yuuri began to unbutton his dress shirt, pulling it free from the waistband of his trousers and chucking it over the desk chair. Unbuckling his belt, Yuuri watched Victor's body twitch in response, feeling his own body doing the same.

Certainly there were words to be spoken, but Victor, who was legendary for having a million things to say every minute, couldn't find a single one in his brain. Running an idle hand over his own thigh, he inhaled sharply as Yuuri's pants dropped to the ground. There was something predatory in Yuuri's gaze as it roamed over Victor's body and his skin reacted as if Yuuri was already touching him. There had never been anyone, in all of the relationships Victor had ever had, who could make him teeter on the edge of orgasm with only a look. For the millionth time since the night before, minus a few shaky minutes that morning, Victor thanked his stars for his own dumb luck.

"Am I still an asshole?" Yuuri asked, kneeling onto the bed and playfully throwing his arms over Victor's shoulders. He wanted to throw Victor down on the bed and make him a sloppy mess of a human, but Yuuri suddenly felt self-conscious, naked in front of his best friend in the bright light of the afternoon. Victor's hands ran up the outsides of Yuuri's thighs and found home on each of Yuuri's sides. Gulping, Yuuri cocked his head, raising an eyebrow at the still silent Victor.

"No," Victor whispered, suddenly overcome by feelings and clinging to the very edges of his sanity as Yuuri began to run light fingertips over the back of his head. "Your note was sweet, how many times did you have to write it to get it perfect?" Dipping his head, Victor licked a slow line from Yuuri's collar bone to his earlobe. If Yuuri had plans to return to the conference for the afternoon, Victor was determined to make him forget them.

"All I heard was that my note was perfect," angling his head back, Yuuri let Victor have full access of his neck for a few tantalizing moments. The vibrations of Victor's snicker made Yuuri's skin tingle. Both of their previous times together it had been Victor who had ultimately won the fight for control. It wasn't going to happen this time. Slipping his hand onto the back of Victor's head, Yuuri curled his fingers into the soft silver hair and tugged. Leaning back, he brought a hand to Victor's chest and slipped one knee in between Victor's legs. With a final rotation of his hips for leverage, Yuuri knocked Victor backwards on the bed.

Two choices rolled through Victor's mind. He could use his size and flip Yuuri onto his back to regain control, or he could relinquish it. The idea of giving himself over to Yuuri made him squirm. No matter how much he had claimed to love any of his previous partners, he had always maintained the control when intimate, never fully trusting anyone. This was Yuuri though, the big brown eyes and pouty pink lips hanging barely out of reach over Victor's own had become staples in his life. If he was going to let himself be taken, there was no one other than Yuuri he would want to carry him.

Watching Victor relax underneath him, the subtle ease of the tension in his face, made Yuuri feel weak. Without words, Yuuri knew that Victor was giving in and that their playful banter was going to be set aside for the time being. This time was going to be different, and Yuuri felt the nerves flicker throughout his body. Eyes still open, Yuuri lowered himself to capture Victor's lips, letting his body press flush to Victor's.

It was the tenderness that prickled Victor's heart. Yuuri's hands were grazing over his skin, pressing lightly and making Victor feel dizzy with sensation. Thinking of being with his best friend this way had been terrifying. The anticipation of this moment, sober and with the intention of taking every part of it in a slow, unhurried pace had made Victor antsy. He thought that starting it with a joke, presenting himself naked on the bed, would have kept it light. As he let his tongue slid over Yuuri's, Victor realized he had never been so happy to be wrong.

Taking a moment to breathe, Yuuri placed a small kiss to Victor's lips before starting his journey over Victor's body. The night before, when they had hurriedly strip each other down and tumbled on the bed together, it had only been when Victor was finally inside of Yuuri again that their pace had slowed. The image of Victor above him, whispering incoherently as he thrusted their bodies together, had lingered in Yuuri's mind all day. He had fallen asleep feeling warm and loved and he wanted Victor to be left with the same feeling.

Feeling Yuuri against him, the warmth of Yuuri's skin in conjunction with the wet heat of Yuuri's mouth had Victor moaning out in appreciation. The small graze of Yuuri's teeth against his nipples, the trail of teasing circles Yuuri's fingers were leaving on his abdomen, and the feeling of Yuuri's knees pressing to spread Victor's thighs were making his brain feel like jelly. The only thoughts he could register were sensations, and they were rippling through his body making him shake.

Carefully Yuuri slid off of the end of the bed, hooking his arms around Victor's legs pulling him to the edge. It was a similar position to the one Victor had Yuuri in on their first night together, and Yuuri was thoroughly enjoying the change of situation. Pushing Victor's feet to the edge of the bed, Yuuri spread his cheeks open and licked a pressing stripe directly over Victor's hole.

Sparks flew behind Victor's eyes as he let the expletives escape from his mouth. The words became a mesh of sounds as Yuuri continued to tease him, pressing tongue and fingers against his most sensitive spots. When he felt Yuuri's mouth begin to snake over his balls to surround the tip of his dick, Victor grasped the bed praying that he wouldn't come before Yuuri was inside of him.

Sucking lightly on Victor's smaller head, Yuuri attempted to reach the lube which he had slipped into the pocket of his dress pants. The move was harder to effectuate than Yuuri had assumed and he made a mental note to commend Victor for his flawless rhythm in the same situation. Releasing Victor's dick, Yuuri continued to fondle Victor's tightening sack, finally able to snag his pants and remove the bottle. Opening the lid and purposefully squeezing a liberal amount of lube onto his own hard length, Yuuri shuddered at the chilly temperature. Using the globs gathered on his own skin, Yuuri coated his fingers and eased them back to Victor.

The first intrusion made Victor gasp, head burrowing down against the bed as he tried to get used to the feeling. Yuuri knew, after numerous conversations about the matter, that Victor had always wanted to try this and Victor found himself biting his lip, overwhelmed with the feeling of being penetrated. He wouldn't need to tell Yuuri to take it slow, and Victor relaxed knowing that Yuuri would never do anything to hurt him.

Turning his head, Yuuri placed a kiss against Victor's thigh and then drop his head lower to pepper small kisses near Victor's balls. He wasn't going to attempt to pull Victor's dick back into his mouth, knowing that it would possibly be too much. Carefully, Yuuri continued to massage Victor from the inside as he paid worship to Victor's thighs through small kisses and little flicks of his tongue.

A graze to a spot inside of him had Victor releasing a strand of curse words alternating with Yuuri's name. The spot, one which Victor always knew to aim for, had never been touched inside of his own body by another person and he found himself pulling the sheets from their tucked position in pure desperation of something to hold onto. Nothing Victor had ever felt could compare to Yuuri's slowly circling fingers and Victor was sure he was going to lose his mind before he was able to orgasm.

Three fingers had made it in and out of Victor, finally letting Yuuri feel confident about the next step. Stroking more lube over his own dick, Yuuri stood and encouraged Victor to move to the center of the bed. Leaning down, Yuuri gently kissed Victor's forehead as he pressed Victor's right knee towards the mattress. Sliding a pillow under Victor's back, Yuuri paused to take in the vision of Victor below him.

Getting tested had always been a group activity, one that Seung Gil and Phichit had stopped participating in after their first year of marriage. Victor knew Yuuri was diligent about protection with his other partners, and Victor was a similar level of controlling. Still, they had touched on the subject the night before, lying with their legs tangled and their hands intertwined, sleep chasing both of them. Decisions had been made with mutual points about monogamy and honesty, and Victor knew that when Yuuri took him there would be no barrier between them. The thought made his heart skip a few beats as he smiled at Yuuri and nodded to indicate he was ready.

The intensity of their connection rippled through Yuuri as he slid himself home inside of Victor. Simply breathing was a labored task, feeling the way Victor perfectly wrapped around him, squeezing in a delicious rhythm as Yuuri began to move. Dropping his weight forward, Yuuri kissed Victor's shoulder, and then his nose and then his forehead again, silently worshipping the beautiful man below him.

The world had stopped spinning as Victor felt Yuuri ease himself inside and then begin to move back out. It stung, but then it didn't and Victor was falling boneless into Yuuri's pace, letting the mumbles pass through his lips as his body began to erupt in small explosions. "I'm…" Victor couldn't get the words out, but he felt Yuuri tenderly wrap a hand around his dick. Curling forward, Victor felt the world burst as he came all over Yuuri's hand and his own stomach.

No one could have continued to hold out when faced with the beauty that was an orgasming Victor. Yuuri let himself fall over the edge, purposely controlling his movement so that he wouldn't drive harder into Victor than necessary. The feeling of his body, emptying deep into Victor had him feeling light-headed as his orgasm finally reached its completion.

Reaching up to grab at Yuuri's face, Victor grimaced when Yuuri jerked back. "The hell…" Victor questioned, trying once again to connect his lips to Yuuri's.

"I… your ass, Vitya," Yuuri eased back, guiding himself out of Victor. "You don't want to kiss me yet." Standing, Yuuri lost his balance and nearly toppled onto the floor due to his numb legs. "I will be right back. Don't get up, alright?" Wobbling, Yuuri made his way to the bathroom.

"As if I fucking could," Victor shot back, without ferocity as he splayed his limbs out to every side. If sex had ever felt that good, Victor couldn't remember it and he laid floppy on the bed, staring at the ceiling without really seeing anything.

Spreading toothpaste on his toothbrush, Yuuri brushed his teeth as he collected the closest washcloths and squeezed them under the warm water. Leaving one to the side of the sink, he used the other to clean off his body, wincing at the feeling of the cloth over his sensitive softening dick. Spitting and replacing his toothbrush on the side of the sink, he washed his hands and then rewarmed the second cloth. Wringing water from it, he shut off the sink and made his way back to Victor.

Hearing the footsteps, Victor flopped his head toward Yuuri with a lazy smile. He cursed when the cloth brushed over his stomach and automatically clenched when Yuuri reached between his legs. Laughing at his own awkwardness, Victor forced himself to relax while Yuuri gently wiped him clean. Being taken care of after sex was also something Victor had never experienced, and he could feel the emotions welling back up inside of him. Reaching out to grab Yuuri's wrist, Victor took the cloth and tossed it on the floor before pulling Yuuri onto the bed.

Settling into Victor's side, Yuuri let his head drop to Victor's shoulder. Cuddling naked had somehow already lost most of its awkwardness and Yuuri threw an arm over Victor's waist as he let his weight cover half of Victor's body. "So…" Yuuri lifted his head to rest his chin on Victor's chest.

"If you ask me if it was good, I am going to be forced to throw you off the balcony," Victor had his eyes closed and his face tipped toward the ceiling. "Although I can't currently feel my legs so the threat is idle, but still very real." He felt Yuuri chuckle against his chest and smiled, opening one eye to peer at Yuuri. "Was it good for you?"

"Be careful, Nikiforov," Yuuri teased, "I _can_ feel my legs and if need be, I can carry you across this room and over that balcony." Nuzzled into the crook of Victor's shoulder, Yuuri let his own smile take over. They had skipped about a thousand steps in their relationship, but Yuuri figured they had years and years of getting to know each other, and this was their reward for making it to this point alive. There was one thing he really wanted to do though. "Hey…" it was weird not to be able to voice what he wanted, when they had been discussing everything they wanted from a significant other for their entire friendship. Shoving away whatever ridiculous worry was clouding his mind, Yuuri tried again. "We should… you know… maybe…"

"Go on a real date?" Victor finished. With the first _hey_ , Victor had guessed where Yuuri's mind was going, but he wanted to see if Yuuri would actually spit it out. Having mercy on his adorable best friend, Victor offered the end of the request. "I'd like that. It would be nice to be swept off my feet for once." He laughed when Yuuri smacked him on the chest.

"Friday, maybe?" Yuuri traced circles over Victor's nipple, fascinated as the pliable skin became a hard nub.

"Not tonight?" Victor inquired, squirming under Yuuri's touch. "Or tomorrow night? Friday seems so far away." There was a pout in his voice that Victor wasn't proud of but didn't care to change.

"I'm not ready to leave our little bubble yet." Honesty was the best way to go. The hotel suite was theirs until the following morning, and Yuuri liked the idea of hiding away from the rest of the world for a bit. "And tomorrow night is a little over twenty four hours away, so I wouldn't want to violate the Nikiforov code for polite dating."

The mocking tone had Victor sitting up and flipping Yuuri onto his back. "I live and die by that code, thank you very much," leaning down Victor hung his face dangerously close to Yuuri's. "And you know…"

A knock on the door had them both turning toward the front door of the suite. Rolling from the bed, Victor snagged Yuuri's dress pants and slipped them over his naked lower half. They were several inches to short and barely closed over Victor's waist, but they served his purpose of covering his boy bits. Making his way to the door, Victor opened it and peered at the room service attendant. Accepting the iced bucket, the two glasses, and the bowl of chocolate covered strawberries, Victor thanked the employee before closing the door. Walking the loot back into the bedroom, he held it up to show Yuuri in confused display.

Stepping off the bed, Yuuri went straight for the small white card tucked into the champagne bucket. Flipping it open, Yuuri read out loud "Congratulations on your marriage!" Dropping the card to his side, Yuuri glared up at Victor. "Why didn't you tell me we were getting married? I would have at least covered my genitals!"

Bursting out laughing, Victor hopped back onto the bed, setting the bowl down and handing Yuuri the glasses. Carefully he unwrapped and popped the champagne before filling each flute to the brim. From the night stand, Victor's phone beeped as Yuuri's made the sound from Law & Order from its place in his pants pocket on Victor's body. Pulling it from the pocket, Victor stared down at the notification and read, "congratulations on your marriage, love Seung Gil and Phichit." Tossing the phone on the bed, Victor shook his head. "Definitely up for staying in the bubble a little longer, but no more leaving me alone! Fuck the stupid conference!" Victor took a swig from his champagne and saw Yuuri grin over the top of his own.

"I was never going back down there," Yuuri leaned over the bed to kiss Victor, "glad you are okay with the waste of the money though." He laughed against Victor's lips when Victor tickled his side.

"Keeping you naked in bed with me for the rest of the day is definitely not a waste of money," picking a strawberry from the bowl, Victor took a huge bite.

"Now I sound like a prostitute," Yuuri bit his own strawberry as Victor choked, "thanks for that." Winking at Victor, Yuuri chased his bite with more champagne. There was something so exhilarating about going from making love to lovingly teasing and Yuuri felt drunker from those feelings than he could ever get from champagne. Settling back against the headboard, Yuuri smiled at Victor.

"I suppose…" Victor waited until Yuuri had raised the glass to his lips again, "as long as you're my prostitute that's alright. I mean, free representation if you get charged." He couldn't help but laugh as Yuuri sputtered, champagne bubbles splashing onto his chest. Suddenly Victor was overcome with another idea entirely and knew exactly how he wanted to spend the rest of the day.


	6. Chapter 6

**Falling in love with each other had been a rocky road of idiocy, but being in love seemed perfectly easy.**

 **But there was still the rest of their world to deal with.**

 ***whispers* It'sssss baaaaccckkk! Welcome back to the Law Firm and our lovable idiotic best friends turned lovers. it's summer again which means updates and more updates!**

 **A special thank you to the anon on Tumblr who gave me the confidence to start publishing updates for this story again. I really hope there are still readers who want to know how the rest of their stories go!**

* * *

Warmth, heavy and comforting, draped over Yuuri's back as his eyes slowly opened, registering the room around him. The dark curtains were pulled over the tall windows in front of him, slivers of light peeking through the small break between the fabrics. Stillness blanketed the room, punctured only by the breath dusting across his back as Victor continued to sleep curled around Yuuri's body in a leisurely possessive manner.

Yuuri's body felt heavy with sleep, weighted to the mattress with the press of Victor's arm around his waist. His skin was sticky everywhere they were touching, a product of sleeping without clothes, tangled with each other under the cover of the hotel's thick down comforter. Never in his life had Yuuri been so amazingly relaxed while sharing such intimate space with another person.

Most of Yuuri's body had no desire to move. Yesterday he had left the bed with a sense of regret and obligation, glancing back over Victor's peaceful face as he prepared for his day of torture at the world's most boring conference. This morning the only restriction on their ability to remain wrapped into their tiny world, protected by the walls of the hotel suite, was the required check out time.

And Yuuri's very insistent bladder. Suppressing a groan, Yuuri attempted to ease out from underneath Victor's arm, lifting the covers to swing a leg toward the floor. He squawked loudly as he was hauled backwards onto the bed, colliding with Victor's bare chest as Victor's arms precariously squeezed directly over Yuuri's stomach.

"Not this morning, Katsuki," Victor playfully growled, wrapping his arms tightly over Yuuri's waist. Twice already Yuuri had escaped the bed before Victor could wake up and prevent it, but this morning Victor had felt him stir. Determined to keep Yuuri underneath the covers until the very last minute, he shifted his arms around Yuuri's chest and brought his leg up to wrap around Yuuri's hip.

"Victor!" Yuuri wiggled in an attempt to escape Victor's hold, scared of his own need to laugh as Victor wrapped around him like a touch-starved octopus. "Victor!" Yuuri tried again, hurling himself forward and dragging them both across the bed. "Vitya! I just have to pee!"

"You're lying," Victor snuggled into the back of Yuuri's neck. "You want to make me wake up without you again. Our relationship is not going to last very long if you can't learn to handle my early morning affections." Wiggling his fingers, Victor grinned as Yuuri gasped into laughter.

"Unless you have harbored a secret interest in water sports that I somehow missed over the last decade, you need to let me go… now." Lurching forward again, Yuuri almost escaped Victor's hold.

At the last second, Victor got a hold of Yuuri's ankle, using his grip to yank Yuuri back onto the bed and pining Yuuri with his weight. "How do you know that I didn't? You don't know everything about me." He grazed his nose over Yuuri's, the giddiness rising to an overwhelming press in his chest as Yuuri raised a skeptical eyebrow at him.

"I do know everything," Yuuri ran his fingers down Victor's back. "I know that you love breakfast more than any other meal." Pressing his fingers at the upwards curve of Victor's ass, Yuuri saw the spark of interest flash in Victor's eyes. "I know that you love having your neck kissed, right here under your ear lobe." Demonstrating his knowledge, Yuuri nipped at Victor's neck. "And I also know… exactly… where…" Shifting his weight, Yuuri adjusted his hands to pinch Victor's sides, laughing as Victor exploded in giggles, flopping wildly off of Yuuri and onto the bed. Taking advantage of the loss of Victor's hold on him, Yuuri sprang from the bed, sprinting toward the bathroom and throwing the door closed.

Panting, Victor flopped on his back, grinning at the ceiling. The playful wrestling, Yuuri's incessant teasing, and the feeling of bubbling bliss made Victor's head spin. These were the moments he had been dreaming of, trying to shove all his previous relationships into the confines of his idealistic expectations and failing every time.

Those failures were simple to understand now. He had searched everywhere for the relationship that had always been right under his nose. Smile continuing to dance over his face, Victor rearranged himself on the bed to wait for Yuuri to appear again.

Flushing the toilet, Yuuri stepped in front of the mirror, bending down to wash his hands and catching a brief glimpse of himself in the reflective glass. His hair was a tangled mess on top of his head, sticking out in a million directions and making him look like he had lost a battle with electricity. His chest and neck were decorated with bruises, matching the ones he had noted on his thighs. Tentatively, he twisted at the waist, eyes going wide as he noted the polka dots now covering his backside. He knew they had gotten a little overzealous throughout their evening, but Yuuri was shocked to see the markings covering a remarkable amount of his body.

Yet, not a single part of his brain registered any level of embarrassment. Scanning over the marks again, Yuuri let his fingers idly trace the ones he could reach, feeling his body react from recalling the sensation of Victor's mouth against him. The door to the bathroom banged opened, making Yuuri topple forward to grab the sink.

"Excuse me! You are taking too long." Entering the bathroom, Victor laced his arms around Yuuri's torso from behind connecting their eyes together in the mirror. Flicking his gaze downwards, Victor smirked as Yuuri began to blush. "What's got you so worked up, my friend?"

Feather-light touches ignited Yuuri's skin as Victor's hands traveled lower over his body. "I could ask you the same question, counselor," Yuuri joked, pressing backwards and feeling Victor hard against him.

"I just have to pee," Victor blinked innocently at Yuuri's reflection in the mirror, the mischief in his eyes the only tell Yuuri could identify.

"Mmhhmmm… ok…" Yuuri murmured, rolling his hips back and causing Victor to let a small gasp ghost over his bare shoulder. "Don't be too long then. Check out is in two hours." Reaching behind Victor, Yuuri gave his ass a quick pinch before spinning free from Victor's grasp and throwing an inviting smile over his shoulder, disappearing through the bathroom door.

Whistling to himself, Victor took one last glance in the mirror, seeing his own elated reflection. Every dream he had ever had was waiting to be fulfilled in the next room, and he fully intended to use every minute of the next two hours to celebrate that.

* * *

"Good morning, Mr. Katsuki. Did you enjoy your stay?"

There was a gleam in the eyes of the young woman at the reception desk as she addressed him. Yuuri found himself looking over his shoulder to smile at Victor who was still humming as he retrieved coffee from the courtesy cart. Handing over his room card and credit card, Yuuri nodded, unable to control the smile which seemed to be a permanent fixture on his face. "Lovely place you have here, I will make sure to leave a positive review." He happily drummed his fingers on the polished wood, waiting for his final bill to print and watching the receptionist gather the parting gifts intended for each of the conference attendees.

A press at the small of Yuuri's back and had him grinning over his shoulder, startling when he found himself peering into green eyes instead of the blue he expected.

"Good morning, Yuuri," Chris hummed, thumb making a slow circle on Yuuri's lower back, "we missed you last night."

Victor snapped the top on the second cup of coffee, daydreaming about his date with Yuuri scheduled for the next evening. He knew he had to survive meetings through the afternoon hours and court on Friday morning, but nothing could spoil the good mood that had taken permanent residence in his mind. Balancing both cups of coffee, Victor turned toward the reception desk.

His eyes narrowed as he took in the scene in front of him. Crossing the tiled floor with an elegant swiftness, he held out the coffee cups, pressing them into the confused hands of the woman behind the counter. "Do you mind?" he asked, sparing her only a quick smile before rounding on Yuuri. Winding an arm around Yuuri's waist and one around Yuuri's neck, Victor pulled him into an improvised dip, dropping his mouth to crush against Yuuri's in a bruising kiss.

A low whistle escaped Chris, causing Victor to pull back with a sheepish grin in Yuuri's direction. To his surprise, Yuuri's face wasn't angry, instead Yuuri looked flushed and utterly aroused, a look that Victor had memorized over the last twenty-four hours. Angling his head, Victor smiled politely at Chris as he returned Yuuri to a standing position. "Ah, Christophe! I didn't see you there," Victor squared his shoulders, offering his hand for Chris to shake.

"About time you two finally got together," Chris responded, smacking Victor on the shoulder and ignoring Victor's confused noise. "You're a lucky man, Nikiforov, remember that. And Yuuri… if he messes up, you know where to find me." With a wink, Chris headed toward the revolving doors at the front of the hotel.

"So…" Yuuri hiked his bags back on his shoulder, grateful that he hadn't been holding them when Victor had spun him toward the ground. "Was that completely necessary?"

Flirtatious humor tinted Yuuri's question, making Victor's ears turn pink. Whispering an apology and a thank you to the receptionist, Victor plucked the coffees from her hands and pressed one into Yuuri's. "Look! I got you coffee! Best boyfriend ever, right?"

Victor's cheesy smile made Yuuri chuckle. The kiss had been a little embarrassing, but part of him liked the idea of Victor being jealous of Chris's advances. It would never be a side of Victor that Yuuri would exploit but knowing that Victor cared enough to want to kiss Yuuri senseless in the middle of the hotel lobby was an exhilarating feeling that Yuuri was not going to deny.

"Yes, but you're evading the question." Yuuri bumped his shoulder against Victor's, breath stuttering when Victor laced their fingers together. _This is it_ , Yuuri thought, _this is us, in the real world… holding hands_. The thought thrilled him and terrified him in the same second. Experimentally swinging Victor's hand, Yuuri looked sideways to find Victor already looking at him.

"I don't want to let you go," Victor admitted, bouncing slightly on his toes as they pushed out of the hotel to stand next to the valet. Handing over their tickets, Victor took the opportunity to wrap his arms around Yuuri again, carefully cradling his coffee behind Yuuri's back. "I hate that I have meetings. I want to go get Makkachin and meet you at my house so that we can spend the rest of the day naked." Behind him, the young parking attendant flushed bright red, tripping on his own feet as he went in search of Victor's car.

"Victor," Yuuri warned, dropping his bag on the ground and flinging his arms over Victor's shoulders, coffee cup clipping Victor on the back of the head. Public displays of affection had never really been his thing but knowing that he would have to spend the next few hours without Victor by his side had Yuuri feeling a little clingy. Everything had felt so perfect when they were hidden away in the hotel suite, and now he could feel the dread of the world threatening that happy isolation.

He dipped toward Victor for a kiss, pausing when a thought interrupted his path. Brows furrowing, Yuuri suddenly looked up. "Where's Makkachin?" Part of him was hoping that Victor had the sense to leave Makka with Phichit and Seung Gil, who obviously already knew that their relationship had potentially shifted. Another part of him, the part that knew Victor all too well, knew that Makka was probably-

"She's with your parents," Victor answered, watching Yuuri's eyes waiver from his and refocus on Victor's chin. In his haste to reach Yuuri, Victor had phoned Mama Katsuki and begged her to keep Makkachin overnight, blushing when she responded that they already assumed they would be. She had sent him pictures of Makka racing around with the visiting children in his pleading response for one more night, but in his desire to concentrate on Yuuri alone, he hadn't shared them. Standing with Yuuri in his arms, Victor became concerned seeing Yuuri's teeth gnaw nervously at his bottom lip.

"Your parents knew I was coming here," Victor lifted one of his hands to run his thumb over Yuuri's bottom lip. "I told them that I was going to confess to you. Your mom told me she has been setting you up on terrible dates to push you into admitting your feelings for me." He laughed when Yuuri's head snapped up, looking like he was going to develop an eye twitch.

"She what?!" Yuuri exclaimed, grabbing Victor's face with his free hand. "Oh my god, my mother!" It was hilarious to him, the idea that his mother had purposely found every boring man on the planet in an attempt to shove Yuuri toward Victor. It hadn't worked exactly as she had planned, but Yuuri supposed she was going to take this as a victory anyway. Laughing in spite of the ridiculousness, Yuuri captured Victor in a quick kiss, unable to sustain it through his amused laughter.

"Um," the sound of a throat clearing had them both looking toward the team of young valet attendants. "Your cars." Two sets of keys were held out to them, and Yuuri accepted both of them, placing a tip in each young man's hands.

Bending to pick up his bags, he propped the straps on his shoulder and took Victor's hand to tug him toward their waiting cars. "So… I have to get Vicchan from Seung-gil…" Yuuri reluctantly let go of Victor's hand, popping his trunk and tossing his bags inside.

"And I have to get Makkachin from your parents." Pulling Yuuri back to him, Victor carefully pushed his trunk closed. Threading his fingers into Yuuri's hair, Victor gave him one last kiss before finally releasing him.

They both headed toward the driver's side doors of their separate cars, pausing to look over the hood of Yuuri's car at each other. "Good luck!" they called in unison, both of them breaking into grins before sliding into their individual vehicles, ready to face the rest of the world.

* * *

Except Yuuri really wasn't. He had parked his car fifteen minutes ago, cutting the engine and remaining frozen in his driver's seat. Phichit and Seung-gil were his best friends, they were bound to be excited about his new relationship status with the fourth corner of their friendship square, but Yuuri could feel the anxiety of their excitement already creeping in to affect his happiness. It made no sense that he was so stressed about answering questions regarding his relationship with Victor, but Yuuri knew from experience that his anxious mind rarely hung out with the rational part of it. Sighing, he pushed opened his car door and dragged himself toward his demise.

"Mr. Nikiforov!" Phichit yelled from his place at the open front door, lifting his foot as Vicchan ran underneath him to collide with Yuuri on the walkway. Vicchan loved being at Phichit's and Seung-gil's and Yuuri knew he was spoiled rotten whenever he visited, even if Vicchan would try to convince him otherwise.

Scooping up his wiggling furball, Yuuri looked up at Phichit. "Thanks for taking care of Vicchan!" Yuuri waved a nervously casual hand, taking a step backwards. "I will catch up with you later!" He spun on his heel making a beeline for his car as he heard Phichit shout, "Oh hell no!" from the front door. A firm hand landed on his shoulder and dragged him backwards causing Yuuri to stumble slightly.

"Yuuri Katsuki now Nikiforov, you get your ass in that house and give me details." Phichit wrapped his hand around Yuuri's upper arm and pulled him back to the house. Wordless, nonsensical protests poured from Yuuri's mouth, despite the fact that his body had already conceded to Phichit's guidance. Admitting defeat, Yuuri cuddled Vicchan closer to his chest ready to survive the interrogation from his best friends.

"Leave him alone, Phichit," Seung-gil called from the kitchen, the smell of perfectly spiced ramen filling Yuuri's nose as he stepped into their living room. His stomach grumbled, betraying him and giving Phichit the exact opening he needed.

"Yuuri's _starving_ , honey," Phichit continued to pull Yuuri along, thrusting him down into a seat at the kitchen table. The Chulanont-Lee kitchen was decorated in a fusion of their two cultures, making it the brightest and most welcoming space Yuuri had ever spent time in, outside of the kitchen in his parents' home. Letting Vicchan settle in his lap, Yuuri accepted his fate as a captive for lunch.

Placing a bowl in front of Yuuri, Seung-gil gave him a sympathetic look. "You might as well spill the details. You know he is going to get them out of you one way or another." Tipping his head back, Seung-gil leaned into the kiss that Phichit pressed against his cheek.

"You all love me," Phichit remarked, slipping into his chair with his own steaming bowl. "And Yuuri wants to tell us all about it, don't you, Yuuri?" Digging directly into his bowl, Phichit didn't even bother to look up at Yuuri.

"Victor and I are a couple now," Yuuri took an abnormally large bite of noodles, stuffing his mouth full so that he couldn't elaborate beyond his brief statement.

"Did he get down on his knees and profess his love for you?" Phichit made a face when Seung-gil slapped his arm. "Or did he get down on his knees and express his feelings another way?"

The suggestive wiggle of Phichit's eyebrows had Yuuri flustering, almost dropping his chopsticks into his bowl. Involuntarily, his mind flashed to the image of Victor, shower water pouring down his back, kneeling on the tile with his hands and mouth working their way over Yuuri's lower half. Nearly choking on the food in his mouth, Yuuri shook his head trying to shake the memory.

He didn't miss the perceptive look exchanged between Phichit and Seung-gil. Yuuri looked down to pet Vicchan with his free hand, anchoring himself with the feeling of his dog's soft curls. "He showed up in my hotel room. We fought. And then suddenly we weren't fighting anymore."

"You were doing something else that starts with an f- OW!" Phichit rubbed his side where Seung-gil had elbowed him.

"Yuuri?" Seung-gil was still shaking his head at Phichit's pout as his spoke across the table, saying Yuuri's name like a question. "Did you two talk?" He waited until Yuuri nodded his head. "And you are happy?" Seung-gil continued to peer at Yuuri, acknowledging Yuuri's enthusiastic nod with a nod of his own. "Ok, Phichit, now you can plan the wedding."

Yuuri groaned into his bowl as Phichit let out a cheer. He couldn't deny how happy he felt though, the shared excitement of Phichit and Seung-gil was threading into his own delight. Although his anxiety about Phichit's insistent need to pry about their more explicitly rated activities was validated repeatedly over their meal, any fear that they would be concerned over the development between him and Victor had vanished.

He could only hope Victor was experiencing similar positive reactions from his parents. Silently praying that Mari wasn't channeling Phichit's curiosity, Yuuri let himself try to relax over a cup of tea following lunch.

In the back of his mind, where the demons liked to spin their most evil invasions of negativity, Yuuri could feel the tickle of trepidation telling him that he couldn't let everyone down. His best friends expected that his relationship with Victor would be nothing short of a hallmark romance. Victor deserved nothing short of perfection. His heart already knew that his mother was somewhere sobbing happily over the turn of events.

It was up to him to make sure his relationship with Victor didn't fail and to do that, he would need a flawless plan, starting with their first date.

Accepting the brief hugs offered by Seung-gil and Phichit, Yuuri barely heard their final goodbyes as he opened the door to let Vicchan settle into the passenger seat of his car. He was happy that he didn't have his own commitments for the afternoon, determined to get back to his apartment as soon as possible and begin planning every second of their date the next night.

In his pocket, his phone beeped, a familiar sound that told him exactly who was texting him. Even as his worries were growing louder in his mind, he paused before putting his car in drive to answer Victor's happy text. The small link to Victor brought the flutters back and Yuuri clung to that feeling as he headed home.

* * *

Last time Victor drove up the dirt road to the Katsuki home he had felt the sharp trill of nerves because he had no idea how they would react to the news that he was and is in love with their son. In all of the scenarios he had imagined on that last drive, he had never dreamed that they had all been pushing Yuuri toward him their entire friendship. He had never dreamed that he would abandon his dog to Yuuri's family, so that he could have two days of barely interrupted sex with their son. He hadn't really dared to dream that he would eventually return, not only as Victor the best friend, but as Victor the boyfriend. Somehow all of those uncertainties existed only two days ago.

Victor could feel his palms sweat as his guided his car into his usual parking spot. _They want us to be together_ , Victor told himself, turning off his car and rubbing his hands on his thighs. "They are going to be happy," he said out loud, trying to quell the storm of worry swirling in his stomach. _I'm not going to hurt him,_ he promised himself _, this time I will do everything right. I won't let Yuuri down._ Squeezing his eyes shut for a moment, Victor shoved his worries down and stepped from his car.

Makkachin came thundering around the side of the house, tongue lolling from the side of her mouth, her doggy smile broadening with every step she took toward Victor. Opening his arms, Victor caught her when she leapt, laughing with every doggy kiss licked onto his face.

"Vicchan!"

He looked up to see Mama Katsuki standing on the porch, Mari leaning on the door frame behind her with a knowing look on her face. Releasing Makkachin, Victor waved, taking a reluctant step toward Yuuri's mother. Like Makkachin, Mama Katsuki ran toward Victor, throwing herself forward and capturing him in a bone crushing hug. "You did it!" she cried, grinning up at him with the hint of tears in her eyes.

"Oh, he did it alright," Mari remarked, arching an eyebrow toward Victor paired with a wicked grin.

Involuntarily, Victor's mind took him back to that morning, walking from the bathroom and discovering Yuuri sprawled over the bed, purposely taking up as much space as possible and taunting Victor with the subtle shift of his naked ass. He felt his body began to react to the memory, panicking and gently pushing Mama Katsuki out of the hold she had around his waist. "I… um… well,,. yes," Victor cleared his throat, trying to ignore Mari's laughter. "Yuuri and I… we are officially dating now." He yelped when Mama Katsuki's arms wrapped around his waist again, picking him up to spin him around. The strength in her tiny body always caught him off-guard and he flailed his arms in panic.

"Oh Vicchan, we're so happy! Come inside, have some food, and tell us all about it." Placing Victor back on the ground, she tugged on his shirt sleeve to lead him into the house.

"Yeah, Victor, tell us _all_ about it," Mari teased under her breath, laughing again as the red spread over the back of Victor's neck.

He let himself be led back to the dining room table, grateful to find it empty of guests as he was gently shoved into a chair. Yuuri's dad appeared from the kitchen, sliding a bowl of rice and meat in front of Victor before slapping a hand on Victor's shoulder. Victor peered up cautiously as Papa Katsuki leaned closer to his ear. "I'll pay for the whole wedding, if you let her believe her plan worked." Choking on his laughter, Victor covered his mouth with his hand, nodding once. He would have let Mama Katsuki have that anyway, even without the extra incentive.

Smiling as she shuffled back into the room with a tea tray, Victor rose to take the ornate platter from her hands and place it safely on the table. Taking his seat again, Victor took a calming breath, lifting his chopsticks and preparing to dive into his lunch.

"Was it romantic?"

Pausing with a bite halfway to his mouth, Victor looked across the table at Mama Katsuki's expectant face. An image of Yuuri, shirtless and spread over Victor's lap flickered into his mind causing Victor to nearly drop his chopsticks. He gritted his teeth together as Mari snickered again, balancing his chopsticks on the edge of his bowl as he stalled for another second.

"It was… unique," Victor mulled over the word in his mind, becoming displeased with himself. "It was as if every wish I ever had came true at once. So… yes?"

Even though he still felt flustered by the possibility of more questions, Victor felt his heart settle. The Katsukis had always been his family, and right now they were all grinning at him as if he had given them the most precious gift in the world. Their glowing acceptance, in the form of Mama's watery eyes, Papa's bright smile, and Mari's knowing smirk, made Victor's elation soar as his heart steadied into a comfortable rhythm in his chest.

Lunch came with many questions and Victor found himself happily answering each one. He wanted to talk about Yuuri, he wanted to talk about their future, and mostly he wanted to stay with his family and soak up every ounce of their enthusiasm until the absolute last second possible.

When he settled into the driver's seat of his car, Makkachin's tail happily thumping against the backseat, he began to hum. Never in his life had he ever felt so happy, and before he put the car in reverse, he unlocked his phone to send a message to his boyfriend.

Lifting a hand to pat Makkachin's head, which was now happily resting on Victor's right shoulder, he eased his car backwards out of his spot and guided it down the hill toward the office.

* * *

Worked sucked. Victor banged his head against the files stacked on his desk, cursing himself for being absolutely useless over the first four days of the week. He had been completely caught up last week, but the downhill slide had begun after Phichit's comments about banging one out last Friday. Despite sitting in his office for an hour after Yuuri had stormed out, Victor had succeeded in getting exactly nothing checked off his to-do list.

The trend had continued into Monday morning, Victor's mind basically becoming a useless sieve on any subject other than Yuuri. It was impressive that he had been able to handle the Leroy case, a triumph which came more out of spite and a need to elevate himself about the obnoxious man than Victor's actual ability to concentrate.

Now his concentration was failing for a different reason. He had struggled through all of his afternoon meetings, dolling out advice and direction with his mind half on the clients in front of him and the other half reliving every detail of the best two days of his life. He would have sold his soul to the devil to go back in time, rolling right back into bed with Yuuri and then freezing time there so he would never have to leave. Glancing at his list, with its remaining ten items to be checked off, Victor banged his head one more time before reaching for his phone.

* * *

"Reservations for seven o'clock," Yuuri muttered, stroking Vicchan's ear as he ran through the checklist in his mind. "Suit to the cleaners by nine, pick it up by three. Florist right after that. Restaurant already knows the wine. Band starts playing at nine." Idly retrieving his phone from its charger, Yuuri felt a ray of happiness cut through his growing nervousness.

"Working is really hard when you aren't here," read Victor's text message. The ten saddened emojis made Yuuri snort and he responded without a second of overanalyzing.

"If I was there, I don't think we would have gotten any work done." He took a moment to locate the winking face from his short list of recently used emojis.

"Great, now all I can think about is having sex in my office," the three dots appeared after Victor's message as Yuuri's grin widened. "And now something else is really hard."

Pausing with his thumbs over the keyboard, Yuuri waited to see if Victor was going to chance another picture. The office was surely abandoned by now, given that it was nearly nine at night, but Victor had already sent him a long list of responsibilities he had ignored while pining over Yuuri for the earlier part of the week. "Serves you right," Yuuri had responded earlier, laughing to the point of tears when Victor had responded with a series of table flipping GIFs.

"You better be ready to fix this wood problem tomorrow night, Mr. Katsuki!"

Yuuri raised his eyebrows at Victor's text, chuckling to himself as he typed out his response. "Sleep together on the first date? What kind of man do you think I am?" He smiled as Vicchan nudged his hand looking for affection.

"My future husband… according to… well everyone," Victor responded, his own strand of winking faces and hearts taking up three text lines.

Yuuri swallowed as he read and reread the text. Victor had already told him about his father's comment and Yuuri had made fun of Phichit's desire to also immediately plan a wedding. He had thought that they had both determined that these ideas were all jumping the gun and hadn't expected the subject to be brought back up.

There wasn't really a reason to panic. Yuuri had played with a similar idea in his own mind over the course of their friendship; it tended to be a subject that his mind couldn't avoid with the constant jokes about him and Victor arguing like an old married couple. The joke carried more weight now and the concept of Victor already returning to the joke about marriage was doing two different, yet equally powerful, things to Yuuri's heart and mind.

"You never know," Yuuri typed, ignoring his shaking hands, "I could've planned the worst first date ever and you may be embarrassed to be seen with me ever again." He added a crying laughing face so that Victor would hopefully take his statement as a joke instead of the nervous doubt that it actually was.

Twirling in his desk chair, eyebrows furrowing at Yuuri's text, Victor carefully crafted his own response. If he knew his best friend at all, Yuuri had managed to tie himself up in the idea of perfection. He needed Yuuri to know that perfection was simply getting to exist in a world where Yuuri loved him. "Yuuri, we could eat dollar burgers sitting on the hood of your car and it would be perfect." He added a few hearts and then waited a beat before typing another sentence. "I should get back to work so that I can get Makkachin home before I get any more pathetically long glances from under my desk. I'll let you know when I am there safe. I love you, my Yuuri."

Some of the knots in Yuuri's stomach eased as he read Victor's words, smiling at the mental image of Makkachin's forlorn puppy dog eyes and lingering huffs of frustration. "Please do. Love you both." Feeling cheesy, Yuuri kissed his phone before placing it back on his bedside table.

Alone in his bed, Vicchan splayed across his chest, Yuuri tried to convince himself that tomorrow was going to be flawless and that if they did end up married, it would be the date they would always remember for all their years to come. Ignoring the clench of his stomach as the thought of marriage crawled back into his mind and the doubt building about his own ability to take Victor on the type of date he truly deserved, Yuuri rolled onto his side, burying his face in Vicchan's fur and praying for sleep to take him away from his own mind.

* * *

 **I've also posted a lot of different things since this story started, so please click over to my works on Ao3 if you want to see everything else I have been up to! Thank you for your patience and support while waiting for this story to continue!**


	7. Chapter 7

Victor sat perched on the edge of Phichit's desk watching his friend type diligently away at a motion which had to be filed by the end of the day. He knew he should let Phichit work, he knew that Phichit's laser focus on the computer screen was supposed to be a hint about Victor's need to shut up and leave his office, yet Victor couldn't contain his excitement and therefore willfully chose to ignore all of Phichit's context clues until something was said outright.

Tonight was his first date with Yuuri. Victor had jumped out of bed that morning, heartbeat already skipping happily in his chest and eyes filled with hearts. He cooed at Makkachin as he headed for his closet, spending a ridiculous amount of time picking out an outfit that he wouldn't need for at least twelve hours. He decided on his best black underwear and sniffed all the bottles of cologne before choosing exactly which he would wear for the momentous occasion. It didn't matter that he and Yuuri had already committed to each other and had already become intimately aware of all of each other's nether regions, Victor felt the buzz of excitement like it was woven into his skin prepared to make him jitter through his day.

His cursed schedule was packed to the brim with his own meetings and deadlines. There was only a small relief that he didn't need to appear in court, his mind torn between wanting the distraction and knowing that he would've only had his head partially in the game. Victor had no qualms about the amount of daydreaming he was doing nor did he care that he was slowly driving Phichit insane with his romanticized hypotheses for Yuuri's date plans. He had parked his ass on Phichit's desk more than thirty minutes ago, sighing until Phichit had caved and asked him what was up.

The onslaught of Victor's hopes and dreams for the night had Phichit snorting and Victor watched him turn back to his computer with a smirk on his face. If Phichit had really wanted Victor to shut up and get out, he would have said so directly, and Victor had a strong suspension that Phichit liked how happy his best friends were. He was positive that Phichit would miss their bickering, but also had no doubt that Phichit would find a new way to tease them before too long.

Glancing down at his phone, Victor frowned at the lack of response from Yuuri. He had been sending an assortment of excited emojis throughout the day, pausing in between every task to remind Yuuri how excited he was. He tried to keep it light, not wanting to add pressure to Yuuri over the event, especially since Yuuri had so adamantly insisted on planning the entire thing himself. This had struck a deep romantic chord inside of Victor, only making him swoon harder for the man he already adored with his whole heart.

"Yuuri isn't responding," Victor commented, thumb flicking over his screen as he reviewed the last few messages. The last time Yuuri had sent a text, it had been a winky face and two hearts, but that had been over an hour ago. Victor had sent two messages after that with no response.

"He's probably running all over town stressing out," Phichit said with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulder. "You know how he gets about anything important having to do with you. Remember your twenty-first birthday?"

Victor grinned into his own lap with the memory of Yuuri and his sparkly blue folder which had contained every detail of Victor's now infamous twenty-first birthday party. Everything had been perfect, but Victor distinctly recalled Yuuri's maniac behavior in the week leading up to all the surprises he had planned for Victor. Even when they had been chilling in the Katsuki's hot springs, doing nothing more than resting up for an insane night out, Yuuri had been ticking through timelines in his head. Victor remembered the soft way Yuuri had stress-whispered to himself and the continuous promises he had made to make everything perfect. In the end, the celebration had been more than Victor could have ever hoped for, but the memory of Yuuri's anxiety flares in the week before it made Victor's stomach twist in sudden knots.

"Was I wrong for letting him do this?" Victor asked, brows furrowing as he curled his fingers on the edge of the desk. "I don't want Yuuri to remember our first date as a stressful thing. This night should be magical."

A soft smile appeared on Phichit's face as he sat back to look at Victor. For a moment Victor wondered if Phichit was recalling his own first date with Seung Gil, and his worry eased the tension in his shoulders. Those two had been nearly strangers during their first date, but Victor and Yuuri had almost ten years of knowledge already stored away before the front door even opened to theirs. If the thought of a first date could put a smile like that on Phichit's face, Victor was positive he was wrong to worry.

"Yuuri is going to want this to be perfect," Phichit tapped his fingers together in a steeple, both elbows resting on the arms of his desk chair. "There is a chance he goes overboard with it, but for the sake of romance, I say you go along with whatever he comes up with and know that he has all the best intentions."

Nodding, Victor jumped off Phichit's desk with an eager hop. "I mean, it's me and Yuuri! What could go wrong?"

Walking out of Phichit's office, Victor had no idea how to feel about Phichit's hysterical laughter erupting behind him.

* * *

The sun was bright overhead, beating down on Yuuri's neck and making him wish that he had thought to wear a hat. He was grateful that Phichit had willing taken the only meeting Yuuri had on his schedule, swapping Yuuri for a hearing on Monday so he could go with Seung Gil to take their dog to the vet. The trade had left Yuuri with his day wide open, giving him the time to properly devote his energy to planning the perfect first date.

Part of him wished that Vicchan was with him for these little errands, knowing that his dry cleaner would have loved the opportunity for cuddles and the florist would have happily spoiled Vicchan with treats from his own lunchbox. The pavement was hot and the lines of heat waivered over the ground, and despite his desire to have his best furry friend with him, Yuuri was glad he had sparred Vicchan's paws from the exposure to the overly hot concrete.

Still, it would have been nice to have his furball with him, especially during the moments when he could feel the anxiety bubbling inside him, threatening to drown his sanity with every passing second. Victor had said that he would be happy eating sandwiches on the roof of Yuuri's car, but Yuuri wouldn't subject Victor to something so simple. They had spent years going on that exact outing, regrouping from heartache, school stress, or other unnecessary drama over the greasy contents of overstuffed deli subs and shared bags of French fries. Yuuri wanted more for their first date, he wanted to give Victor every ounce of romance that Victor had always deserved and had never been given by any of the other idiots he had wasted time with. Yuuri still felt a little moronic in his approach to such romantic schemes, but he was Victor's moron now and that made all the difference in Yuuri's determination to succeed.

The trip into the cool dampness of the florist's shop took only a handful of minutes, dumping Yuuri back into the heat of the afternoon faster than he had expected to be. Impressed by the immaculate set of blue roses laying in the crock of his arm, Yuuri carefully maneuvered them onto the passenger seat of his car, sighing with relief when they laid unharmed in their cushioned place. Opening the back door, Yuuri hung his suit from the rear oh-shit handle and draped the bottom of the bag carefully over his seat. He dropped the bag holding his newly polished dress shoes onto the floor and quickly jogged around to his driver's seat. He had a wallowing concern that all of his plans had gone too perfectly so far and it left him with an eerie sense of unease.

Telling himself to just breathe, Yuuri backed his car out of his space and headed for home.

* * *

Pacing in his front hallway, Victor could practically feel his heart bouncing along with his feet. He had forced himself to take every step of getting ready at an unnaturally slow pace, using each minute of pampering to calm his enthusiastic nerves.

It wasn't that he was nervous to go on a date with Yuuri. When he looked back on their time together as friends, which Victor had done thoroughly throughout all of his useless hours at work that day, he had realized how many quasi-dates they had already been on. So many movies seen, so many dinners eaten, so many hours spent trash talking their way through their favorite arcade. When Victor considered their years together, it was overwhelming to discover that he had been practically dating his best friend for the better part of their friendship.

Except now there was a potential for kissing and, Victor hoped, a whole lot more.

His mind had wandered during his elongated time in the bathtub, taking him back to their time in the hotel room together. He had even let his thoughts drift back to their first night, laughing when he realized that drunk sex was never really a smart nor sexy choice but somehow it had been both when it involved Yuuri. Victor had let his hands run over his own body as he remembered their first night together, his smile unrestrained as he remembered all of the silly, teasing moments that his brain could recall.

In truth, their entire friendship had been made up of silly, teasing moments, but Victor had never allowed himself to hope that those moments could mean more. As he had buttoned up his shirt, Victor had contemplated all the moments when their relationship could have tipped and all the times he had been too scared to flick the scale. Somehow, through every moment of hesitation and stupidity, they had finally found themselves together and Victor grinned at his reflection, seeing his own giddiness reflected back at him.

Nearly tripping on his own feet when the doorbell rang, Victor took a deep breath and threw open his front door.

They stared at each other, eyes absorbing the sight of each other's outfits and Yuuri's mouth opening and closing without a sound. He stood on the front porch, irresistibly handsome in the navy blue suit that Victor distinctly remembered compelling him to buy. Victor, unfortunately, was sporting his best gray slacks and favorite casual dress shirt. They were completely mismatched and neither seemed to know what to make of it.

"I… um…" Yuuri scratched the back of his head, cursing himself for his own oversight. He had spent so much time planning their date, he had totally forgotten to tell Victor that he would need a suit. Mentally kicking himself for being an idiot, Yuuri tried to save the moment by pulling the flowers out from behind his back and placing them in Victor's arms. "These are for you. I'm… I'm sorry about not telling you where we are going. I… we can do something else if you don't want to change." He avoided Victor's eyes, hand still on the back of his neck, praying for the redness to disappear immediately.

"Yuuri," Victor took a step forward and covered the hand on Yuuri's neck with his own. Pressing a kiss to Yuuri's forehead, Victor tried to rid himself of his own awkwardness. He wasn't mad that he was underdressed, he just needed a moment to rearrange his thinking.

Pecking a second kiss to Yuuri's head, Victor pulled back to smile at his flustered boyfriend. "I love the flowers, they are beautiful. No one has ever brought me blue roses before!" A little whisper in the back of Victor's mind reminded him about past complaints regarding other dates and their lack of flowers and he smiled at Yuuri, understanding immediately why his arms were full of a dozen beautiful stems. "Do you think you could put them in a vase for me while I change? I can't go out looking like a ragamuffin when my boyfriend looks like such a studmuffin." He wiggled his eyebrows and tried not to laugh at his own bad joke, his smile breaking when Yuuri snorted.

"Dork," Yuuri rolled his eyes and took the flowers back from Victor. "You've never looked like a ragamuffin in your life. Not even when you had the flu in undergrad and puked in my shoes." The urge to smack himself in the forehead came quickly as Victor groaned from behind him.

"Maybe… let's table the discussion of all the times I have puked in or near your belongings for the duration of our date, shall we?" Victor was laughing as he proposed his suggestion, grabbing Yuuri's shoulders and chasing a kiss across his cheek. "Give me five minutes, my love," Victor called, taking his staircase two-by-two, leaving Yuuri behind to continue to blush in the middle of the hallway.

Scrounging for a vase, Yuuri stopped to smack an open palm to his forehead several times. How stupid was he for not at least telling Victor to dress up? He couldn't count himself as considerate, especially when Victor looked so shocked to see Yuuri standing there in his full suit. If he had been the perfect date, he would have found a way to encourage Victor to wear something dressier without giving away the surprise.

 _Strike one_ , Yuuri thought bitterly, standing up from where he had squatted to retrieve the biggest vase he could find. His mind continued to reel as he filled it with water and then slid the bouquet into it. At least Victor had seemed to like the flowers and he tried to let that fact alone reassure him.

Hearing footsteps on the stairs, Yuuri moved toward the kitchen door watching Makkachin finally bounding down to say hello with Victor hot on her heels looking jaw-droppingly gorgeous in his light gray suit. It was unfair how flawless Victor looked in anything he wore, and Yuuri voiced this opinion out loud, ignoring Makkachin's demands for attention in favor of watching Victor descend the last two stairs.

Victor felt the heat flush to his cheeks. Yuuri had paid him a number of compliments over the years, but somehow the ones that left Yuuri's lips a little breathless and his eyes a little wider made Victor's heart feel as if it was going to skip a dangerous number of beats. Hearing the love and admiration in Yuuri's simple words was enough to send Victor flying into Yuuri's arms, apologizing to Makkachin for stealing her cuddles before promptly stealing a kiss from Yuuri. "You're the one who is flawless, Yuuri," Victor let his arms linger at Yuuri's waist. He couldn't help squeezing them close again when Yuuri flushed. "How important is dinner anyway?" Victor asked, leaning down to pursue more kisses.

"Very," Yuuri answered, indulging Victor's advances with a quick kiss, before wiggling Victor's hands off of his hips and linking their fingers together. "If we don't go we're going to be late." Chuckling when Victor pouted at him, Yuuri sidestepped him in the hallway and tugged him toward the door. "Come on, your chariot awaits."

Laughing at Yuuri's attempt at fairy tale humor, Victor said his goodbyes to Makkachin and followed Yuuri toward his car, sliding into the passenger seat when Yuuri held his door open. Excitement and anticipation renewed, the clothing debacle now vanished from his mind, Victor buckled his seatbelt and happily bounced his knees waiting for what Yuuri had in store.

* * *

The restaurant was packed with people, despite being the most expensive location that their small town could offer. When Yuuri had presented their name at the podium, they had been informed that the restaurant was slightly behind on seating and were encouraged to take a seat at the bar and wait for their table. Sensing the disappointment in Yuuri's eyes, Victor offered him an elbow to lace his arm through and led Yuuri to the bar. Ordering the two most ridiculous drinks Victor could think of, he slid one alarmingly blue one in Yuuri's direction and took the startling green one for his own amusement.

"This looks especially terrible," Yuuri laughed, his frustration over their lack of a table clinging to the edge of his words and making his laugh sound tense. Trying to tell himself to calm down, he took a sip of the shimmering blue liquid and immediately gagged on the overtly sweet liquor.

Daintily sipping his own weirdly colored drink with a playful smirk, Victor grimaced at the sourness pouring over his tongue, failing to keep up his attempt at looking alluring while drinking. "I've made a mistake," he winced, shaking his head and placing the glass back on the bar. "It's too sour," he commented, fingers lightly guiding the glass in the circle to watch it catch the light and wondering exactly what kind of concoction he had subjected himself to in the name of making Yuuri laugh.

"Mine's too sweet," Yuuri contemplated Victor's drink, pushing his own slowly across the bar. "Want to trade?" He made the offer with a smile and batted eyelashes, knowing that Victor would enjoy anything sweet that he could get his hands on but that potentially the blue monstrosity would even be too sweet for Victor's tongue. The side of Yuuri that still thought like a best friend continued to push the drink toward Victor, keeping his eyes wide to feign innocence.

Eying the sloshing blue liquid, Victor shrugged as a simple sign of agreement. He lifted his bright green glass to trade its place with Yuuri's blue one, the exchange going smoothly until someone stumbled into Victor's back.

Blue and green liquid spilled in slow motion, splashing toward the front of Victor's white shirt and trickling off the edge of the bar onto Victor's lap. A few droplets landed on Yuuri's sleeve as he stared in horrified silence at the mess covering Victor. _Strike two_ , his brain hissed, momentarily freezing him in place.

Snapping into action, Yuuri grabbed a handful of napkins and immediately started blotting the sticky alcohol from the front of Victor's shirt, trailing his hands down to dab at the liquid starting to stain the front of Victor's pants. Making strained, wordless noises, Yuuri patted Victor's clothing with both hands, freezing again at the sound of Victor's laughter.

"It's okay," Victor covered Yuuri's hands with his own, wrestling the napkins from Yuuri's tensed fists. "It will be fine," Victor reassured him, taking the napkins and tossing them onto the bar, "but if you keep running your knuckles over my thigh like you were, I'm going to drag you to the bathroom and eat you instead of dinner." Next to him the burly man in an ill-fitted black suit choked on his handful of peanuts.

"Oh my god, Victor, you can't say stuff like that out loud!" Yuuri dropped back onto his bar chair, burying his face in his hands and groaning with embarrassment. Considering how the night was going so far, Yuuri thought himself lucky that Victor would be thinking such things, but he didn't need the dirty looks of the graying man in his bad suit or the appalled gawking of his birdlike companion. Ducking his head away from Victor, Yuuri tried to calm the wildfire spreading across his cheeks.

"Okay," Victor leaned over to put his chin on Yuuri's shoulder, "I won't say anything else like that… until we get home tonight." Sliding a hand up Yuuri's leg, Victor squeezed his thigh as he ran his nose over Yuuri's cheek. A throat clearing behind his shoulder had Victor pausing in his attempt to seduce Yuuri away from the edge of his embarrassment.

"Um. Sirs… your table is ready." The young maître de looked anywhere but at their faces as he rocked back and forth on his heels waiting for their reply.

Nudging Victor back with his elbow, Yuuri stood from his seat and nodded at the awkward young man in front of him. "Thank you, please lead the way," he said with a curt nod, extending an arm to encourage Victor to walk in front of him. Yuuri blushed into his hairline when Victor whispered a comment about Yuuri wanting to stare at his ass as he walked. Unable to avoid doing so after Victor's suggestion, Yuuri almost walked into the chairs of four other patrons, the shape of Victor's ass perfectly highlighted in his suit and emphasized by the exaggerated way Victor was walking. Snickering at Victor's antics, Yuuri once again felt his mind beginning to relax away from the edge of the stressed cliff it kept finding itself on.

The maître de took his time pulling both chairs out for Yuuri and Victor, standing with his arm bent over his waist and waiting for them to situate themselves. Spouting off the specials for the evening and putting out the wine list, the young man spoke quickly and with purpose. Waiting to let him finish, Yuuri asked to confirm what time the band would be performing.

A big part of his surprise for Victor would be dancing following dinner, but Yuuri felt his hopes die as the maître de informed him that the band had to cancel for the evening. Disappointed, Yuuri was barely able to suppress his pout, burying his face in the offered menu and only nodding through the remainder of the maître de's spiel about wine lists and dessert menus.

"Do you remember," Victor lifted his water glass and sipped it, eying Yuuri over his menu. "When we were drunk that one weekend at the beach? When we danced on the sand in our bare feet while Phichit and Seung Gil thought they were being sneaky getting it on in the tent?" Adjusting his position, Victor pressed his leg against Yuuri's under the table.

Smiling, Yuuri nodded. "You made me lift you and we both ended up falling into the waves." He remembered exactly how beautiful Victor had looked with the ocean water crashing over him, his hair tangled and wind swept and his cheeks pink with laughter. "I'm sorry there is no band tonight," Yuuri stared blankly at his menu, disappointment making him frown. "I really wanted to dance with you."

"Yuuri," Victor reached across the table and pulled Yuuri's fingers from their tight hold on his menu. Linking their hands together, Victor tapped on the back of Yuuri's hand until he looked up. "We can dance anywhere. Hell, we can move the furniture in my living room and dance, or on the side of the road. We don't need some fancy band." Stroking his thumb over Yuuri's knuckles, Victor tried to soothe away the tension he saw on Yuuri's face.

"Yeah," Yuuri sighed, smiling at Victor. "You're right. I'm sorry. I just… I wanted everything to be perfect." Feeling sheepish for stressing, Yuuri shrugged his shoulder. "You know, I even traded Phichit a meeting today for a court appearance Monday so I had the whole day to run around and plan. You deserve the best Victor, and I wanted you to have your dream date. But I know…" Yuuri stopped talking when he looked at Victor's face. Swallowing hard, he examined the pinch of Victor's eyebrows and his downcast look. "I… Victor… I…" Not knowing why Victor suddenly looked upset, Yuuri floundered for words.

"You took Phichit's court appearance for Monday?" Victor asked slowly. Phichit hadn't said anything about the switch and normally Victor wouldn't have any idea about Phichit's schedule, except Phichit had taken that particular case from Victor. "You mean… representing Leroy?" There was a sickness building in Victor's throat as he finally raised his eyes to look at Yuuri.

Pulling his hand away from Victor's, Yuuri fiddled with his own fingers. "Um, yes…" Nodding while avoiding Victor's piercing gaze, Yuuri tried to continue. "I thought that… I don't know. Phichit said you didn't want to represent him… and after what happened last time with you and him… I thought I should…"

"What do you mean last time?" With a subtle _thunk_ , Victor dropped his menu onto his plate. He hadn't talked to Yuuri about the interaction he had with his least favorite client in the courtroom hallway, but his brain was telling him to give Yuuri the benefit of the doubt. Right up until the reddest of blushes overtook Yuuri's entire face and neck.

"See… well… Yuri was there, you know, that day when you represented JJ. And he… kinda of recorded your argument." Yuuri looked to the ceiling, praying that lightning would burst through the roof and strike him down. This was not a conversation Yuuri wanted to be having in the middle of their date or frankly a conversation he wanted to ever have. Stuttering, he bit the inside of his cheek to control the tears that wanted to fall. "I think… I hurt JJ more than I realized… and he deserves an apology. I thought… if I represented him then I could talk to him, um, afterwards, and then, uh, that would be it…" Yuuri couldn't make himself meet Victor's eyes, he could feel the anxiety twisting inside of him, waiting for Victor to react.

"You owe him nothing," Victor spat, dropping his hands into his lap. "That man only wants you to want him, for reasons I don't understand and don't care to. You shouldn't put yourself in a situation to be mauled by him again. Or perhaps you didn't mind that." The last sentence escaped him before Victor could stop it, his emotions getting the better of him. He immediately regretted it when Yuuri's face fell. "Oh God, Yuuri… oh God… I didn't mean that." Throwing himself across the table, Victor scrambled to grab Yuuri's hands. "Yuuri, please."

"It's ok," Yuuri let his hands limply lie in Victor's, his voice shaking. "It was selfish of me not to think about how you would feel. I don't want to see him, Victor, but I have to make things right." The waitress appeared at their table, eying them warily and cutting off any of Yuuri's further thoughts on the matter. Releasing Victor's hands, Yuuri shakily lifted his menu and picked the first item he could focus on. Distantly, he heard Victor order his own dish, the words barely audible over the static sizzling in Yuuri's ears.

 _Strike three_ , he thought bitterly, eyes going unfocused as he handed off the menu to the waitress, prepared to spend the rest of their disastrous evening just trying to survive.

* * *

The car door shut quietly as Victor closed it behind him, waving at Yuuri who only nodded in return. They had barely spoken through the painful hour of their dinner and both of them had brought most of their individual dishes home. Victor hadn't found the right words to apologize and Yuuri had remained disconnected, leaving Victor feeling lost and ready to break down.

With lead feet, Victor climbed the stairs to his front door, unlocking it and letting Makkachin climb all over his legs. He felt stupid, a victim of his own insecurity and jealousy, an idiot who had spoken without thinking and destroyed everything good because he couldn't keep his mouth shut. The evil part of his brain told him this is why he had never tried to date Yuuri, because he always knew that he would be the one causing the hurt, not the one getting hurt and Yuuri deserved so much better than that.

Dragging himself up the stairs, Victor threw off his suit, locating his rattiest pair of sweatpants and baggiest t-shirt. He shoved his feet deep into his softest pair of slippers, only noticing he was crying when his tear drops hit the floor near his feet. Sliding down to sit on the ground, Victor wrapped his arms around Makkachin. "What I am going to do, girl?" he asked, burying his face into her fur. "If this was any other bad date, I could eat ice cream with Yuuri and we could hash out all the horrid details."

Head shooting up, Victor's eyes moved rapidly as if he was rereading the transcript of his own thoughts. If this date had happened with anyone else, he would already be on his way to his best friend's house, armed with gallons of cold, sugary dairy treats and prepared to obsessively analyze every detail. It was their bad date tradition: ice cream, a couch, and their most comfortable sweats.

An idea swarmed Victor's heart, causing him to scramble to his feet and jog down the stairs toward his front door. Clipping Makkachin's leash and gathering his necessities, Victor threw open his front door.

"Let's go get him, girl," Victor laughed, a little hysterical with his own emotions, but reassured when Makkachin happily barked at his heels. Leaping from his steps, Victor sprinted toward his car, determined to find his best friend and make everything right.

* * *

Driving home had been nearly impossible and it wasn't until Yuuri was standing inside of his own front door that he realized he had no recollection of how he got there. He could barely breathe through his own sobs, snot and tears making ugly streams down his face as he stumbled toward his bedroom.

Vicchan watched from his perch on the bed, his head tilted with concern as Yuuri deposited his suit into a pile on his floor. Rooting blindly in his dresser, Yuuri yanked out a pair of sweatpants, pulling them on as he moved toward the chair holding a pile of clean laundry. Even though he knew he didn't deserve to wear it, he tugged Victor's sweatshirt over his head and wrapped his arms around his stomach, collapsing on the bed to let his sorrow take over.

They hadn't even made it one date. Yuuri had been stressing over everyone thinking they would be walking down the aisle within a week and they hadn't made it three hours. They had the perfect relationship as long as they were hidden away in a hotel room where no one else existed, but as soon as they tried to function like a real couple, everything had ripped apart. Yuuri had always known that Victor would deserve someone better than Yuuri could be, someone who wouldn't make so many mistakes and wouldn't leave Victor at his doorstep crying. Yuuri wanted to be perfect for Victor, and he had failed in the way he had always known he would.

A knock on his front door had Yuuri wiping at his face, grimacing when Vicchan barked and scampered out of the room. Feeling weighed down by his own self-deprecation, Yuuri hauled himself down the hallway, not bothering to look through his peephole before unlocking and throwing open the door. His eyes went wide when Makkachin immediately tackled him to the ground.

Victor watched as Makka knocked Yuuri down, giving Victor time to recover from the sight of Yuuri tear-stained and red dressed in Victor's hoodie. He felt hopeful seeing his own grief mirrored in Yuuri's face and offered a hand to help pull Yuuri to his feet. Lifting the contents of the plastic bag dangling from his fingers to eye level, Victor silently waited for Yuuri's reaction.

"Ice cream?" Hearing his voice crack, Yuuri cleared his throat. "Are you bad dating me?" He didn't mean to laugh, but the stressed giggle popped out of him in a delusional bubble. "I don't think that's how it works." Shaking his head, he tried to withdraw his hand from Victor's, frowning when Victor refused to let go.

"I had the worst date of my life with the most perfect man in my life," Victor moved toward Yuuri's couch, pulling Yuuri down next to him. "Right now I need my best friend to help me figure out what happened." Digging into the bag, Victor produced a gallon of the despicable rum raisin that Yuuri insisted was the best flavor on the planet and his own mint chocolate chip tub. Plunking a box of plastic spoons between them and two minis of vodka, Victor threw himself backwards onto the couch cushions.

"I don't even know where to start," Yuuri sighed, picking the plastic ring off of his ice cream and flicking the lid off. Settling back with the tub between his knees, Yuuri stabbed his spoon into the perfectly smoothed ice cream. "I… just… I wanted everything to be perfect." Swirling the spoon in his mouth, Yuuri closed his eyes and let his head fall back.

"Why though?" Victor ignored his ice cream, leaning toward Yuuri to rest his chin on Yuuri's shoulder. "Why did it have to be so elaborate to be perfect?" Victor had come to some of his own conclusions about Yuuri's thinking, but had decided somewhere between the store and Yuuri's front door that he should ask instead of assuming.

"For so many years…" Yuuri felt stupid, his voice hitching as he tried to spell out his thoughts. "You always complained. All these guys… they just… they did everything wrong. They weren't romantic, or thoughtful, or kind, or attentive. It was a never-ending cycle of one jerk after another. I didn't want to be another jerk that didn't treat you right."

"Yuuri," Victor sat up, crossing his legs and guiding Yuuri to face him. "You know why those guys were never able to make me happy?" He ran his hands over Yuuri's cheeks when Yuuri shook his head. "It's because they weren't you."

The words made it past Yuuri's ears, knocking on his brain and made him look at Victor in confusion. "What do you mean…"

"You know who I was comparing all those guys to all these years? The reason they couldn't meet any standard I set? Because _you_ were my standard. I wanted someone who treated me as well as my best friend treated me… because I was too stupid to understand that what I really wanted, what I've always wanted, was to be _with_ my best friend." Tipping Yuuri's chin up, Victor kissed him, keeping it sweet and short. "Yuuri, you don't have to be anyone but who you are, because who you are… well, you are already perfect to me."

"I'm not perfect," Yuuri scoffed. "I screwed everything up, I didn't tell you I knew about JJ, I-" He tirade was cut off by Victor kissing him again. "You can't kiss me to shut me up you know." Yuuri laid his head on Victor's shoulder, closing his eyes when Victor's fingers found their way into his hair.

"I don't want to shut you up. I want to hear what you have to say, but I refuse to listen to you berate yourself for being human. You don't have to be perfect, you just have to be Yuuri." Wrapping his arms around Yuuri's shoulders, Victor felt his mind begin to relax. "I love you," he whispered, pressing his cheek against Yuuri's forehead.

"I love you," Yuuri exhaled, finally letting his shoulders relax. "I'll be Yuuri, if you stay Victor, and we promise to always be best friends."

"Promise," Victor answered, squeezing Yuuri again and then reaching for his own ice cream. "Even though your taste in ice cream will always be the worst." He burst out laughing when Yuuri bit his shoulder, shoving Yuuri away from him and cradling his own cold container. Leaning back against the cushions, Victor poked Yuuri in the cheek with his spoon.

"Thanks," Yuuri said, taking another bite of ice cream and letting himself fall back to Victor's side. "For not giving up on me." He shoved a ridiculous amount of ice cream into his mouth and grinned around the bite.

"Never," Victor responded, shoving in his own oversized bite, letting his cheek puff out with the ice cream in his mouth. His heart settled in his chest, his head resting on Yuuri's shoulder as Yuuri plucked the remote from the arm of the couch. "Let's watch something dirty," Victor suggested, cracking up when Yuuri choked. Laughing harder when Yuuri shoved him off the couch, Victor rolled onto his back and squealed when both dogs tackled him.

From the safety of his spot on the couch, Yuuri watched as Victor rolled around on the ground with their dogs and a thought landed at the front of his mind.

This right here, Victor, him, their dogs, and ice cream after bad days, he could absolutely do this for the rest of his life. Smiling, Yuuri grinned into his ice cream, a completely different type of plan now forming in his mind for their next big date.


	8. Chapter 8

Sounds of banging and off-key singing floated into Yuuri's bedroom pulling him from his dreamless sleep. The bed around him was surprisingly empty, Vicchan and Makkachin also missing during what were usually prime cuddling hours. Rolling onto his back, Yuuri smiled at his ceiling listening to Victor talk to their dogs and loudly complain about Yuuri's lack of vegetables in the fridge.

There was a calmness nestled deep in his chest, a feeling that Yuuri couldn't quite remember ever existing. Normal mornings consisted of his mind insistently clicking into gear, looping a never-ending to-do list like a mocking soundtrack until Yuuri had successfully checked off each item for his day. This morning, his mind was blissfully quiet, taking in the warmth of his blankets over his naked skin and the domestic noises of Victor moving around in his apartment.

Sighing into the fluff of his pillow, Yuuri smiled when he found Victor's scent lingering on the soft fabric. They had stayed up laughing and cuddling on the couch until the night had moved into early morning, only retreating to the bedroom when their kisses turned from loving pecks to deeper explorations of lips and tongues. Under the comfort of Yuuri's sheets, they indulged in gentle touches, taking their time in taking each other apart. The memories made Yuuri's cheeks flush with heat, and he buried his face deeper in his pillow, content to dawdle in his thoughts of all the ways his love for Victor continued to grow.

It wasn't until his stomach gave an audible growl that Yuuri begrudgingly pulled himself from the bed, snagging his discarded sweatpants from the floor, ignoring the need for any other clothing and pausing briefly by his bedside table. He had never really been one to sleep naked but Victor had changed that in the matter of a week. Adding it to the always growing list of reasons his life was better with Victor, Yuuri felt his smile becoming sappy. Unable to resist his desire to be in Victor's space, Yuuri plodded his way out to the kitchen, leaning on the doorframe to admire Victor's hip wiggle as he sang and danced along with the music on his phone.

The sound of Yuuri's footsteps made Victor smile down at the green pepper he was chopping and the tingles running up Victor's spine were his only needed confirmation that Yuuri had appeared to watch him work. Adding a little extra flair to the swivel of his hips, Victor threw what he hoped was a sultry look over his shoulder in Yuuri's direction. "Like what you see?" He teased, trying not to lose his act when Yuuri blatantly moved his eyes to Victor's butt. "Coffee's ready." Pointing his knife to the brewed pot, Victor attempted to keep himself on task instead of jumping Yuuri's half-naked form. "How was waking up in bed… alone?"

Pausing in his pursuit of caffeine, Yuuri raised an eyebrow at Victor's question. "You did that on purpose?" Crossing his arms over his bare chest, Yuuri gave Victor a judgmental look.

"I thought maybe you should see how it feels for a change." Yelping when Yuuri pinched his side, Victor swung out and smacked Yuuri on the ass as he turned to grab the coffee pot.

"Petty," Yuuri teased, pouring his coffee into the biggest mug he owned.

"I'm not petty," Victor argued, "I'm making omelets. And if you keep up this little attitude, I will eat them both myself." He threw a playful scowl over his shoulder, the look losing some of its intended emotion as Victor's eyes couldn't resist taking in every detail of Yuuri's bare chest.

"Petty… as fuck." Taking a long drag of his coffee, Yuuri returned Victor's scowl with a playful version of his own, the smile unmistakable over the rim of his mug. "How long can I expect this petty streak to last?" Placing his coffee on the counter, Yuuri stepped behind Victor, resting his chin on Victor's shoulder and his hands on Victor's hips. The warmth of Victor's exposed back made Yuuri hum and press himself closer. Their skin-to-skin contact made him want to forget all about the hungry growl in his stomach and the seemingly giant omelets Victor was creating.

"How long do you plan to be with me?" Victor questioned. His efforts to continue their banter were almost thwarted by the feeling of Yuuri's chest grazing over his back. Biting the inside of his cheek, Victor tried to refrain from leaning into Yuuri's touch.

"So forever," Yuuri laughed, biting lightly at Victor's shoulder and jumping when Victor dropped his knife on the counter and spun around.

Snagging Yuuri by the thighs, Victor lifted him and plunked him down on the small kitchen table. Leaning into Yuuri's space, Victor forced Yuuri to lie flat with his legs wrapped around Victor's waist. "Look, you cannot come in here all sexy and half-naked and tease me and then say we are going to be together forever and not expect me to want to forget about feeding you and instead want to rail you right here on this table."

"But I'm hungry." Yuuri pretended to pout while hooking his ankles together behind Victor and pulling their bodies flush together. He continued to roll his lips as he talked. "I really could use a famous Victor Nikiforov omelet. Everyone knows protein is very important in the morning." He could feel Victor growing excited and bit his bottom lip to keep from laughing.

"Yuuri Katsuki…" Victor warned. Holding Yuuri's hips with both hands, Victor yanked him further down the table, groaning when Yuuri did another infuriating swirl against his groin. "You leave me no choice," bending forward Victor laced a hand around the back of Yuuri's head and dragged him up for a searing kiss.

Never in his life had Yuuri considered having sex in his kitchen, but as his hands worked their way inside of the waistband of Victor's pants, he thought that perhaps his oversight had been foolish. Shoving the pants to pool around Victor's ankles, Yuuri simultaneously lifted his own hips to let Victor remove his sweats, breaking their kiss long enough to reach for the pocket. Pulling the bottle of lube from its hiding place, Yuuri refused to look up when Victor made a questioning hum.

"Were you trying to rile me up on purpose, Katsuki?" Dramatically flinging Yuuri's pants out of the kitchen, Victor stole the lube from Yuuri's grasp and shoved him back onto the table. "Presumptuous this morning aren't we?"

"Prepared, I would say." Trying not to think about how ridiculous he looked, Yuuri braced his heels on the edge of the table and slowly stroked his own erection. "I mean… I can take care of this myself if you… mmmm… are too busy with… mmm… your omelets." His broken moans were purposeful and Yuuri saw the exact moment Victor's teasing resistance shattered.

"The fuck you will," Victor growled, curling forward to bite at Yuuri's ear. His already slicked finger traced a circle around Yuuri's entrance and Victor felt dizzy at the low hum of Yuuri's moan when he pushed in.

Feeling victorious in his successful plan, Yuuri closed his eyes and let himself get swept away by the feeling of Victor inside of him.

* * *

"Yuuri? What's this?"

Turning over his shoulder from the sink, Yuuri squinted at the paper in Victor's hands. Shutting off the water, Yuuri wiped his hands on the dish towel and motioned for Victor to hand it over. Scanning it briefly, Yuuri handed the paper back to Victor and moved to start putting dishes away. "That's the renewal request for my lease." Actively avoiding looking at his permanently defiled kitchen table, Yuuri stooped to put away his frying pan. Standing back up, he stopped mid-task to examine Victor's thoughtful expression.

"It says your lease is up this month." Victor hadn't been snooping. An email had come in that he needed to respond to for a case and he had settled at Yuuri's desk to quickly take care of it so he could enjoy the rest of his weekend. The blue paper had caught his eye and an idea had blossomed immediately afterwards.

Shoving his spatula into the canister on his counter, Yuuri shrugged. "Hmm, oh yeah, I only signed for a year. I know you told me to sign the five year for the better rate..."

"But you never listen to me," Victor interrupted, smirking at Yuuri's eye roll.

"But I never listen to you," Yuuri agreed, taking their plates from the drying rack and working them over with his towel. "So I have to submit that form by Friday if I want to sign again."

"Do you?" Eyes still on the paper, Victor missed Yuuri's blank stare at his vague question. "Sorry… I mean… do you want to sign another lease? And… stay here?" He could feel his nerves beginning to clog his throat and Victor looked expectantly up at Yuuri.

"I mean…" Yuuri felt his hold on the plate in his hands go slack, his mind racing ahead of itself with the ridiculous speed of hope. "Where else would I live?" He lobbed the ball back into Victor's court, knowing that he was being cowardly. If Victor asked Yuuri to move in with him, he would do so in a heartbeat, but the paranoid part of him needed Victor to be the one to ask.

"My house?" Victor suggested, his hands shaking and causing the paper to make a fluttering noise. "We've been roommates before and that was great… and this time… you could be in my bed… instead of in the next room… while I lay in bed jacking off thinking about you." Panicking at his own word vomit, Victor clapped a hand over his mouth.

"You what now?" Yuuri blanched, his brain fizzled to a darkened screen with only the image of Victor sprawled out in his own room with one hand wrapped around himself. It didn't matter that they had taken each other than an hour ago, Yuuri could still feel his interest growing as the mental image refused to fade from his brain.

"Embarrassing admissions aside! Motion to strike!" Victor practically yelled, moving toward Yuuri. "Do you want to? Move in with me, that is?" He heard the vulnerability in his own voice and the faint thudding of his heart. Only Yuuri could ever knock Victor loose like this and he loved it.

Words wouldn't form, causing Yuuri's mouth to open and close without sound. Unable to make himself speak, Yuuri reached forward and took the paper from Victor's hands, tearing it cleanly in two and then a second time before tossing it in the trashcan. He didn't need to say yes, his ability to speak his answer stolen from him when Victor kissed him.

"Phichit is going to freak out," Yuuri laughed, his hands curled into Victor's hair and his back pressed into his kitchen counter. "You get to tell him tomorrow."

"Why not today?" Victor asked, tickling kisses down Yuuri's neck. "You don't own a lot. I bet if we call them, Seung Gil and Phichit can help us move you in a day." His brain finally caught up to his talking libido making Victor pull back to look at Yuuri. "Sorry… that's probably too fast. I didn't mean to… you can take as long as you want."

Nipping at Victor's bottom lip to stop his downward spiral, Yuuri grinned. "You know what? I'm tired of being scared of stupid things. Like last night… our relationship isn't like everybody else's. We know we belong together. So… let's call them. We didn't have anything going on today anyway." Giggling when Victor smacked a loud kiss to his cheek, Yuuri dropped his forehead to rest on Victor's chest. "I can hear it now… Phichit screeching about us moving in together and you casually informing him that we didn't have anything better to do."

"That's… actually… yup… that's exactly how I am going to do it." Kissing Yuuri's cheek, Victor let him go. "You find us shirts, I'll call our favorite married couple." Winking as he left the kitchen, Victor happily whistled as he went to find his phone. Yuuri was moving in with him and the thrill of being all-in when it came to their relationship made Victor want to dance through the hallway. Giving in to the urge, he did a series of little tap steps, laughing when the dogs joined in to happily prance around his feet.

Standing in his kitchen, staring at his kitchen table, Yuuri could feel how ridiculously goofy his smile was. He started laughing, overwhelmed with excitement and nerves dancing a tango in his chest. Last night he thought he had ruined everything and this morning Victor had asked him to move into his house. Life made absolutely no sense and for the first time ever, Yuuri was completely okay with that fact. Tingling with uncontrollable happiness, Yuuri knew he was ready for this next step.

Hearing Victor laughing from the bedroom, Yuuri couldn't help echoing with his own giggle, setting off down the hallway to start gathering his belongings.

* * *

The task of collecting everything Yuuri owned took a surprisingly short amount of time. His clothes were stacked in neat piles on the bed, waiting for the duffle bags Seung Gil had promised to bring over and all of his kitchen supplies had been removed from cabinets waiting for the boxes Phichit swore he had available. The debate on what kitchen stuff was actually needed had been fairly quick, settled by Victor blushingly admitting that his kitchen cabinets weren't exactly full. It was no secret that Victor cooked only the basics and Yuuri found it irresistibly adorable when Victor squealed through his realization that they could have dinner together every night.

For most of the hours that they were working, those little realizations had been popping like excited bubbles. "Your toothbrush is going to be next mine," Victor swooned as Yuuri collected his abysmally small amount of personal products. "And I can convince you to use real shampoo." That comment had led to a tickle fight and another round of making out, this time on the floor of Yuuri's bathroom.

"We can walk the dogs together." Grinning, Yuuri stuffed all of Vicchan's toys, food bowls and supplies into his travel crate and stacked his two beds on top of it by the front door. "Our babies will have each other on days when we are both gone for work." He bent down to ask their dogs if they liked that idea, giggling when his face was smothered in kisses from two very different sized tongues. He cocked his head in confusion hearing a grunt from his bedroom followed by the unmistakable sound of Victor's laugh. Curious, Yuuri wandered down the hallway, stopping abruptly at the door when Victor began to read.

"Oh, this is going to be fun. You'd be amazed what I can do with a few cable ties, baby." Holding the book in front of his face, Victor read the first ridiculous sentence he could find. Considering the material, it had taken him exactly half a second to land on this phrase and he waited expectantly for Yuuri to react.

Paling, Yuuri stared, eyes going between the book in Victor's hand to the bright pink box at Victor's feet. "Oh god, I forgot about that box." Mortified, Yuuri moved in what felt like slow motion, determined to snag the offending box and fling it away before Victor could dig any deeper, but unable to control his limbs through his debilitating panic.

"And what," reaching into the box, Victor pulled out a giant blue rubber dildo, "do we have here? I have questions, counselor." In the most unneeded move to ever occur, Victor wobbled the dildo back and forth, letting the awkward sound of it slapping against his forearm echo in the room. He could have spared Yuuri the embarrassment of his discovery, but the part of Victor that was still Yuuri's best friend could not let the delectable opportunity go to waste.

"It is… not… what it looks like." Yuuri envisioned marble for his headstone, carved with the words Here Lies, Yuuri Katsuki, He died of terminal embarrassment.

Dropping the book into the box, Victor stood back up holding a blindfold and a set of fuzzy handcuffs. The dildo remained clutched in his other hand, creating a very lewd and uncomfortably tempting appearance. "Yuuri, do we need to negotiate kinks?" He squealed when Yuuri tackled him, holding all of his treasures high above his head and wiggling to prevent Yuuri from grabbing them. The red of Yuuri's cheeks and the determined set of his jaw made Victor want to drop his game immediately and smother Yuuri in kisses, but the need to taunt Yuuri overpowered his other desires. Sticking his tongue out at Yuuri, Victor waved the contraband above his head. "Too bad your arms are so short!"

Straddling Victor's stomach, Yuuri flattened his chest over Victor's face, gritting his teeth when Victor bit his nipple through his t-shirt. Fueled by his determination, Yuuri pinned Victor's wrists to the ground with one hand and yanked the evil items away with the other. Sitting up, Yuuri twisted and tossed them back into the box, not looking directly into it for fear of seeing anything he didn't remember being in there. Catching Victor's wrists again when Victor reached for his sides, Yuuri hunkered down over Victor's hips and pinned his arms above his head.

"This is definitely one of my kinks," Victor taunted, bending his knees so he could bounce Yuuri on his lap by pushing up on the ground. "I would love to hear about yours." He loved the way Yuuri fit perfectly over his hips and returned the favor of Yuuri's earlier teasing by continuing to use his own strength to rub against Yuuri's flawless ass.

"I am going to strangle you," Yuuri threatened, dropping his weight onto Victor to keep him from moving. The threat was idle, dulled by the fact that Yuuri's excitement was obvious and his hips involuntarily moved to grind down on Victor.

Breath hitching, Victor tried to distract himself by torturing Yuuri further. "Now that's not something I am into. See Yuuri? We're negotiating." Victor's laughter turned hysterical when Yuuri released his arms and instead dug his fingers into Victor's sides to tickle him.

Using his thighs to hold Victor in place, Yuuri tickled him until Victor was panting, both of them still hard and their erections grazing every time Victor wiggled beneath him. Sitting back with both hands braced on Victor's stomach, Yuuri raised an eyebrow at his boyfriend. "Are you done now?" His eyes narrowed when Victor shook his head, batting Victor's hands away from groping at Yuuri's thighs.

"That box is Phichit Chulanont's idea of a joke. Remember when they first got married and you were dating… Robert… or Randy… or whoever?" Scoffing at Victor's puzzled look, Yuuri continued. "Anyway it was like a week after they got back from their honeymoon and I was snapping at everyone because of…" trailing off, Yuuri realized he didn't want to admit why, "reasons… and Phichit showed up with that offensive container of pink and blue horror and told me to work myself out. There's even a card…"

Stretching backwards, Yuuri fumbled in the box, only pausing for a second when he felt the length of not just one dildo but two. Groaning internally, he sighed out loud when his fingers caught the edge of the folded paper. "Here… see…" Shoving the paper into Victor's hands, Yuuri felt triumphant. "That proves where this came from. I had no idea how to throw the damn thing out without scheeving out all my neighbors so I shoved it into the back of my closet. Where you apparently found it." Taking in the unreadable expression on Victor's face, Yuuri stopped his defensive rant. "What?"

Eyebrows scrunching, Victor tilted his head and read out loud. "Yuuri, I know it sucks that your soulmate is dating that absolute douchebag but you can't keep ripping everyone's heads off. I don't know what Victor's dick looks like, thank God, but I figured one of these might be a useful replacement. Please for the love of God, take advantage of the gift I'm giving you before Chris has to represent you for manslaughter. Love and hugs! P." Lowering the letter, Victor felt his face heat up, probably matching the same level of redness he was seeing on Yuuri's cheeks.

"I… uh… forgot what it said…" Scrambling to get off Victor's lap, Yuuri found himself pinned on his back on the floor. "Don't look at me," he begged, closing his eyes and pretending Victor couldn't see the sixteen shades of embarrassment coloring his face.

"Soulmate, huh?" Victor remembered their conversation during Seung Gil's elaborate proposal to Phichit about soulmates and hoping to find a love like that. "You think we're soulmates?" Brushing his lips over Yuuri's tightened ones, Victor waited for an answer.

"Not anymore," Yuuri defiantly declared although his defiance was cheapened when he gave into Victor's insistent kiss, letting his hands drift to Victor's waist. Dropping his head onto the floor, Yuuri kept his eyes closed. "Can we please throw that box away and pretend it doesn't exist?" Silently he prayed that for once Victor would have mercy on him.

Victor was tempted to continue to tease Yuuri, fingers trailing down Yuuri's side and venturing toward the tenting at the front of Yuuri's sweats, but they were interrupted by the bang of Yuuri's front door being thrown open.

"You better be dressed!" Seung Gil announced.

"I hope you're not!" Phichit responded.

The small scuffle in the hallway told Yuuri that Seung Gil was attempting to shush his husband. They both appeared in the doorway wearing very different expressions at discovering Victor draped over Yuuri on the floor, the box of explicit items lying next to them.

"I knew that box would come in handy someday," Phichit grinned.

"Let me up so I can murder him," Yuuri growled, springing to his feet as soon as Victor rolled to the side. Pointing at Victor, Yuuri said, "You have to represent me for free." Chasing Phichit down the hallway, Yuuri threatened death in multiple creative ways as Phichit cackled.

Taking the hand Seung Gil offered him, Victor let himself be pulled to his feet, adjusting himself as discreetly as possible as he moved. "You look happy," Seung Gil commented, dropping his pile of duffle bags on top of the pink box to purposely cover the contents. "I'm happy you're happy."

"Thanks," Victor grinned, clapping a hand on Seung Gil's back. "Now should we go separate those two?"

"If we must," Seung Gil shrugged, raising his eyebrows at Phichit's shriek. Laughing together, they abandoned Yuuri's bedroom to go play referee to the death match occurring in the living room.

* * *

Standing with his hands on his hips, Yuuri stared at the empty apartment.

This had been the place where he had started life on his own, his first apartment after Victor had decided to buy his house and the place where he had spent many hours questioning all of the decisions in his life. If these walls could tell stories, they would reveal all the hours Yuuri spent pondering his relationship with Victor and the tears he shed in the moments when he was convinced there would never be anything more.

His struggle as an overworked public defender and his many hours of drowning his stress in hot water and video games were etched into these rooms, woven between the floor boards and a part of the chipped painting at every corner. Events big and small had shaped Yuuri's life and this was the place where he had come to reflect on it all. It was his space, alone with Vicchan, and his haven away from the rest of the world. Now though, it felt as empty emotionally as it was physically.

It had taken less than five hours to pack and transport all of his belongings, his bed moving into the spare room at Victor's house and Victor's guest bed replacing the dilapidated bed in Seung Gil's and Phichit's guest room. Yuuri's desk was set up next to Victor's and they had both endured Phichit's lecture about being productive when working from home. They all knew it would never happen and laughed when Seung Gil had dragged in Yuuri's decorative screen to slide it between the desks.

Yuuri's couch, which had originally been purchased by Victor and Yuuri for their very first apartment, had been given a special place in Victor's basement, along with Yuuri's living room furniture and television. Victor had always meant to make the space a man cave of sorts and Yuuri was relieved to see how easily their belongings could co-exist.

Except for Victor's closet which was a labyrinth of designer suits and expensive shoes. Giving up less than five minutes into his quest to make space for Yuuri's own suits, Victor lead Yuuri to the closet in the spare bedroom, laughing at Yuuri's incredulous remarks about Victor's excessive wardrobe. Victor had kissed him silent, pushing him into the empty guest closet and not resurfacing until Phichit began to bang on the door and demanded to be fed as payment for his manual labor.

"You okay?" Phichit asked, resting his hand on Yuuri's shoulder as Yuuri peered around his empty bedroom. "Big changes recently, it would be understandable if your head was a little… spinny."

"Spinny?" Chuckling, Yuuri shrugged out from under Phichit's hand. "I don't think that's a word." He laughed when Phichit shoved his shoulder, taking a step further into the room.

"It's weird…" Yuuri started his thought and then stopped, rotating in a small circle to examine every inch of the room. "I keep searching for… a feeling of unease. Something in my gut to tell me this is a bad idea, that we are moving too fast. But… it's not there. All I feel is happiness." It was almost unsettling how okay Yuuri was with their spontaneous plan. There was a pang of sadness in the goodbye of his old apartment, but it was fleeting and overpowered by his pure excitement to live with Victor again. This time, they wouldn't just be roommates and the thought of that made the butterflies dance in Yuuri's chest.

"This has been a long time coming." Snickering at his own terrible innuendo, Phichit grinned when Yuuri gave him a bland look. "You two have taken the idea of a slow burn to the ultimate extreme and because of that, you're ready for this. Neither of you have ever been good at doing things in halves… that's why we all work as friends. And now… this is your chance to seize your future. I'm proud of you for taking it."

Yuuri flung himself toward Phichit catching his best friend in a fierce hug. The last inkling, the thread of worry that existed only about what everyone else would think, vanished when he felt Phichit hugging him back. Between them, Phichit's stomach grumbled and Yuuri laughed against Phichit's shoulder. "Let's go," Yuuri said, pulling away from Phichit and throwing one last look over his shoulder as he led the way to the door. "The faster we get to the grocery store, the faster I can make dinner, and the faster we can win the bet."

Chuckling at Phichit's exuberant chanting of "katsudon! Katsudon!" Yuuri held the door open to let Phichit step outside. Without looking back, Yuuri closed the door to his apartment one last time.

* * *

Under the desk, Victor cursed as he yanked the mass of Yuuri's computer cords toward the power strip connected to the wall. Phichit and Yuuri had been assigned to the grocery store run, while Seung Gil and Victor took up the responsibility of reconnecting all of Yuuri's electronics.

Their job would have been significantly easier if it hadn't been Phichit who had disconnected the cords and tossed all of them into the same box. Their first thirty minutes were spent cursing Phichit's name while untangling a vicious knot of tangled wires.

Yuuri's television was already mounted and operational in their basement, and Victor's fingers shook with the need to hurry to complete the setup of Yuuri's computer. He had been the idiot who had stated the terms of the current bet between himself and Yuuri and Phichit and Seung Gil, and Seung Gil continued to remind him how much Victor would suffer if Seung Gil had to submit to Phichit's whims. Groaning when the cords smacked down on his face again, Victor didn't fight it when Seung Gil grabbed him by the ankles and pulled him from beneath the desk.

"Your head isn't in the game." Leveling Victor with a vindictive glare, Seung Gil dropped to his knees to crawl under the desk himself. "Yuuri may look nice, but if we lose this bet, you better hope he actually got rid of that box of horrors."

Eyes going wide, Victor felt the distinct need to ransack his own house to find out if the pink box had found a new home there. Part of him was terrified and another part was intrigued, causing him to make a strangled noise as he leaned over the desk to attempt to help Seung Gil in his efforts. Maybe he had been a little overly cocky about his and Seung Gil's abilities when it came to electronics, and he should have been more wary of Phichit's knowing smirk. Seung Gil's husband was a menace of epic proportions and Victor had no doubt that Phichit had cackled over the idea of Victor and Seung Gil untangling his mess as soon as he and Yuuri had set foot outside of the house.

"Pull this one," Seung Gil instructed, tugging on a gray cord and then forcing it to curve toward Victor's hand. Listening without hesitation, Victor unlaced it through the knot under the desk, setting it aside and going for the next one. Forcing himself to slow down and concentrate, Victor tried to focus on freeing each cord.

His mind didn't want to focus on his task. He wanted to run between each of the rooms of his house (their house, his mind corrected) and take in the sight of Yuuri's belongings mingling with his own. Excitement threaded into a sense of finally, making Victor feel jittery with giddiness.

It shouldn't have been so easy to merge all of Yuuri's furniture and household effects into Victor's living space, and yet the effort had almost seemed nonexistent. His basement needed the exact amount of furniture Yuuri had brought and his guest room looked more complete and inviting with Yuuri's bed standing proud in the middle of it. He had always hated the stiffness of the mattress in that room, but loved that Seung Gil had immediately requested the bed, citing his own father's bad back and a need for a firmer mattress.

At every turn, Victor felt like Yuuri was slipping seamlessly into his home life, even when Yuuri had good-naturedly teased him about the amount of clothes overflowing from Victor's closet. Their make-out session in what was now Yuuri's closet had emphasized that Yuuri had only been teasing and would have become more than kissing if Phichit hadn't found them. Victor felt slightly light-headed at the memory of Yuuri pressing him against the closet wall and he accidentally dropped the plug in his hand directly onto Seung Gil's forehead. He winced sheepishly when Seung Gil raised an eyebrow at him.

"Is it too early to ask Yuuri to marry me?" Victor heard himself ask the question, pulling away from the gap in the desk to avoid seeing Seung Gil's reaction. He realized that the thought had been gaining steam in his mind since the moment Yuuri had casually mentioned forever in the kitchen that morning, and he found himself backing away from the desk defensively. "Sorry… I… wow… thoughts better left… unsaid." Unwilling to look at Seung Gil as he crawled out from under the desk, Victor waved a hand at the red light blinking on Yuuri's monitor. "Well, you got that working then… nice work." Slapping Seung Gil on the shoulder, Victor prayed for the floor to open him up and swallow him whole.

Calmly taking a seat in Yuuri's desk chair, Seung Gil turned on Yuuri's computer, fingers tapping lightly on the keys of Yuuri's keyboard as it sprang to life. "Do you remember my first date with Phichit?"

Caught off guard by Seung Gil's question, Victor found himself flopping into his own desk chair. Silently, he watched Seung Gil swiftly connect Yuuri's computer to the internet, chewing on his bottom lip.

"After my first date with Phichit, I knew I wanted to marry him." Seung Gil spun himself in Yuuri's chair, turning to face Victor. "Out of the four of us, I am the least romantic," he rolled his eyes when Victor snorted, "and I am also the least fantastical. All of you have grand ideas about life and love, whereas I am merely surprised that either of those things came to be for me. And even more surprised that it was Phichit who brought them." Leaning his head back against the chair, Seung Gil continued to rotate the chair slightly back and forth with his toes. "Yet, I never doubted that Phichit was the one I was meant to be with. We were strangers when we started dating, but even you encouraged me to propose in those first three months. So now… I'm going to return the favor."

Blood pounded in Victor's ears as he met Seung Gil's eyes seeing the sincerity in the sentiment. The thought of marrying Yuuri, of sharing a lifetime of being not just best friends but also partners in every sense, made Victor's skin tingle. It wasn't apprehension or fear that he was feeling, it was an insanely overwhelming sense of right. "Will you help me?" Victor asked, his voice sounding high-pitched and causing both of them to laugh.

"Absolutely." Smiling, Seung Gil sat up hearing Victor's front door open and a chorus of happy yips come from the dogs. "It's about time I got to watch you sweat for once." Laughing at Victor's panicked squawk, Seung Gil hauled him from his chair by the elbow. "Now let's go downstairs and inform the losers of their fates."

Hooking his arm with Seung Gil's, Victor let the happy haze continue to flood his mind. For years, Yuuri had been residing in the largest part of Victor's heart, giving him a reason to hold out for true love. Today, Yuuri had moved in, finally making Victor's house feel like a home and taking a leap of faith for their love.

Soon, Victor would ask Yuuri to be his forever. Feeling a thrilling wave crash through him, Victor let go of Seung Gil and took the rest of the steps at a run.

* * *

All the dishes were tucked into the dishwasher and the pots and pans were stowed in their new homes inside of the kitchen cabinets. The countertops were scrubbed clean and the table had been reset with the blue roses from their failed date.

Standing with his arm around Yuuri's waist, waving goodbye to Seung Gil and Phichit from their front door, Victor smiled at how far away their disaster date felt. A little over twenty-four hours had passed since Yuuri had dejectedly dropped Victor off at this very front door, and now they were standing together on the other side as it shut. Pulling Yuuri to his chest, Victor let his fingers dip under the hem of Yuuri's shirt. "Welcome home, Yuuri," he grinned, leaning in to graze his lips over Yuuri's smile.

"I love the sound of that," Yuuri replied, tilting his head to let Victor venture down his neck with soft kisses. "I realized…" sighing as Victor nibbled on his ear lobe, Yuuri threaded one hand into Victor's hair. "I… the last time we went to sleep in your bed… it was…" Losing himself to the feeling of Victor's mouth on his neck, Yuuri opted to lean back on the wall and stop talking.

"If I wake up alone tomorrow morning, I'm making you sleep on the couch forever." Victor nipped at Yuuri's collarbone, hiding his smile against Yuuri's skin when Yuuri laughed. His happiness was seeping into every inch of him, his hands and mouth uncontrollable as they moved over Yuuri's body.

"Someone has to let the dogs out," Yuuri moaned out the last two words, feeling Victor's thigh slide between his legs and apply pressure exactly where he needed it. Ever since Phichit had interrupted their closet interlude Yuuri had been fighting back the thrumming need for Victor to touch him. Victor's hand on his thigh throughout dinner and stolen kisses while they were putting away dishes had done nothing to quell Yuuri's desires.

"Doggy door," Victor murmured, sliding his hands up and taking Yuuri's shirt with them. He tossed Yuuri's shirt toward the laundry room, never lifting his lips from their ministrations. "Come on, let's celebrate properly," he purred, nearly slipping into a whine when Yuuri slipped both of his hands into Victor's back pockets and squeezed. "I want to get you in my bed and never let you out." Untying the drawstring at the front of Yuuri's sweats, Victor slid his fingers beneath the band to palm at Yuuri's growing erection. "Besides, you have a bet to make good on."

Although Yuuri was tempted to make a sarcastic comment about needing to get up to fulfill basic human needs, the thought died on his tongue when Victor released him and instead hooked a finger in the front of Yuuri's pants and pulled him toward the stairs. Feeling drunk on Victor's touch and intoxicated by the simmering heat in Victor's eyes, Yuuri let himself be guided upstairs and laid on the bed, willing to celebrate their new living arrangements in any way Victor wanted.


	9. Chapter 9

Despite the approaching end of the summer months, the heat remained a distinct reminder that the sun wasn't finished frying their small town with its sweltering rays. Sweat made Yuuri's palm damp where it was pressed against Victor's, but Victor seemed unbothered by the slippery stickiness building between them. Lifting their joined hands, Yuuri used the back of Victor's to swipe at the perspiration collecting on his brow. Snorting at Victor's affronted look, Yuuri shrugged. "Only fair, it was your idea to walk when the world is melting."

"Excuse me, but I believe _you_ were the one who guiltily promised our pups a long walk." Victor leaned into Yuuri's side and nipped at the bruise on Yuuri's collarbone that he had left earlier after the dogs had been shooed out of their bedroom. When they had finally emerged to find both dogs pouting outside of their door, Yuuri had weakened immediately and promised them all sorts of outrageous things.

Staring at the dogs now, Yuuri shook his head, attempting to suppress his smile. "I'm pretty sure they wouldn't have accepted their compensation if they knew it required them to wear shoes." For the third time since they had set off on their sun-soaked journey, Yuuri glanced around expecting to find some giddy spectator capturing their dogs' awkward walks in hopes of gaining internet fame. "They look like marionettes… whose strings are controlled by uncoordinated toddlers."

Inhaling with a dramatic gasp, Victor turned to Yuuri with an offended gape. "These shoes are both practical and stylish."

"Makka's shoes are pink," Yuuri pointed out, giving the larger poodle a sympathetic smile when she turned her big eyes in his direction. The look was a plea for mercy, Yuuri was sure of it.

"They match her raincoat." The defiance in the way Victor spoke had Yuuri working even harder to hold back his smile.

"Those are words you said," he deadpanned, refusing to look at Victor and instead focusing on not laughing at the way Vicchan was determinedly waving his legs with the hope of freeing himself from his torturous rubber boots.

Leaning into Yuuri's space, Victor narrowed his eyes. He wasn't positive that Yuuri was teasing him, but history encouraged him to keep pushing regardless. "Well Vicchan's blue ones also match his…"

Letting the loop of Vicchan's leash fall to the bend of his elbow, Yuuri held up his hand in front of Victor's face. "Don't say raincoat," he warned, the inside of his cheek beginning to ache from the way Yuuri was biting it.

Pausing, Victor raised his eyebrow with a hint of challenge. "Match his waterproof, protective layer which shall shield him from the evils of the heaven's tears." Triumphant, Victor wiggled his eyebrows at Yuuri, feeling ever prouder when Yuuri finally broke into giggles.

"God, you're a fucking idiot," Yuuri laughed, swinging their hands between the hips and laughing at Victor's goofy smile.

Victor's devilish smirk was his only prelude to yanking Yuuri into his chest, his voice dropping low as he leaned into Yuuri's ear. "Correction," he whispered, slipping his hand from Yuuri's grasp to settle it possessively at Yuuri's lower back. "I'm the idiot you're fucking."

"Oh for _fuck's_ sake." The sound of a door slamming open robbed Yuuri of his chance to retort with another sarcastic remark. "You're late." Standing in front of the open front door, Phichit stared down at them with an accusing eyebrow raised and his arms folded across his chest.

Sheepishly, Yuuri and Victor exchanged glances, giggling at the admonishment by their best friend. "Sorry, Phichit, it's Yuuri's fault," Victor batted his eyelashes with false innocence as Phichit rolled his eyes in obvious disbelief. "He has trouble keeping his hands to himself you know. And also insisted that we put these adorable booties on our furbabies."

Before Yuuri could correct Victor's outlandish lies, Makka and Vicchan yanked him and Victor forward, demanding to be unhooked from their leashes so they could race inside to see their other favorite playmate.

Bumping his shoulder into Victor's, Yuuri squatted to let their dogs free. He laughed when Makka licked the entire side of his face looking over his shoulder to tease Victor about his similar kissing style. He lost the thought when he noted Victor's intense stare. Collecting the leashes and pushing to stand, Yuuri tapped Victor under his chin. "Eyes up here," he said, giving Victor a playful look. There was heat simmering low in his belly that had everything to do with their earlier teasing and absolutely nothing to do with the height of the afternoon sun.

"I love these shorts." Reaching down to slip a hand in Yuuri's back pocket, Victor went a little dizzy with how tightly his hand was squeezed inside of the fabric. It had pulled so snug over Yuuri's butt and thighs, Victor couldn't control his need to unabashedly ogle his boyfriend's fabulous butt, completely forgetting that they currently had an audience.

He remembered the day Yuuri had bought the shorts and the way Victor had to talk himself down from a really inconvenient boner in the middle of the GAP dressing room. But now, Victor didn't have to hold himself back and his smile became sly and predatory as he pulled Yuuri closer, ignoring the fact that they were in the middle of their friends' walkway. "I have always loved these shorts. And now, I can tell you and I don't have to pretend like I'm not staring at your ass. Because I'm allowed to stare at your ass. And touch it. And…"

"This is our life now." Appearing next to Phichit in the doorway, Seung Gil managed to look extremely put out. "Why did we want this to happen again?" He was obviously struggling to hold in his smile when Phichit shoved his shoulder.

Turning on his heel, Yuuri shook his head at the disappointed whine Victor made at having his hand dislodged from Yuuri's back pocket.

"I specifically remember a certain someone practically shoving me to finally talk to Victor about my feelings. A very stubborn someone." Yuuri playfully stuck his tongue out when Seung Gil glared at him, exchanging a brand of teasing they could only use between the two of them. Truthfully, he owed Seung Gil a lot and eventually Yuuri would find the right words to thank him.

Feeling Victor's arm slide around his waist, Yuuri fell in step with Victor, both of them stopping short when Phichit held up his hands. "Ring check!" Phichit yelled, making both of them jump. Exchanging confused glances, they both raised their hands so that Phichit could grab at them.

"It's not above either of you spontaneous bastards to have decided to elope last night or this morning, and we know one too many judges between us who would gladly marry you two, especially the ones in the betting pool." Yelping, Phichit swatted at the hand Seung Gil had used to pinch him.

"You didn't let me kill him yesterday," Yuuri laid his head on Victor's shoulder. "Can I now?" With an exaggerated pout, Yuuri turned big eyes to blink up at Victor.

Waving a hand forward, Victor smiled when Phichit started to protest while tripping backwards into the house. "By all means…" In contradiction to his words, Victor tightened his grip on Yuuri's waist. "Or we can go inside and use that same energy to be disgustingly loving for the entire length of a baseball game. I'll even sit on your lap." Victor snorted when Seung Gil pretended to gag, throwing a wink in his direction and catching the briefest of smiles breaking on Seung Gil's face. He appreciated the balance between Seung Gil's teasing and Phichit's overt excitement.

Curling his fingers into the front of Victor's shirt, Yuuri accepted Victor's offer with a kiss too obscene for a quiet neighborhood on a Sunday afternoon, laughing against Victor's lips as Seung Gil returned to his theatrical gagging on the front step.

* * *

The afternoon with their best friends had passed like so many others, full of laughter, slight chaos and more arguing than was needed during a baseball game where they were all rooting for the same team. His relationship with Victor already felt like a natural part of all of their friendships and Yuuri had shared this thought with Phichit who had merely smacked him in the back of the head for his obviousness.

He had endured another round of Phichit's ranting about how long Yuuri and Victor had been a couple while being a couple of oblivious and useless assholes, shaking his head and refusing to admit how true Phichit's words were. Hindsight was one hell of a microscope and Yuuri was finding that it was easier to laugh at their joint ridiculousness than he would have ever thought possible.

Smiling at the loving way Phichit continued to be frustrated by Yuuri's long overdue realizations, Yuuri let his head drop back to rest on the headrest of the passenger seat of Victor's car. Though their afternoon had felt as natural as any other day spent with their friends, Yuuri was nervous that their dinner with his family may not result in the same feeling.

Riding quietly in Victor's car, Yuuri traced the tree line with unfocused eyes. The road to his parents' place always came with a sense of peace, a growing feeling of coming home that filled Yuuri's heart no matter how many times a week he made the same trek.

This time he wasn't alone in the drive and although he had brought Victor with him down this road many times in their friendship, today it felt completely different. For the first time, Yuuri was bringing Victor home and not as only his best friend. Trying to diminish the nervously giddy smile that wanted to pull at the corners of his lips, Yuuri snuck a glance at the man behind the wheel.

Sensing Yuuri's eyes on him, Victor quirked an eyebrow up, dancing his gaze only briefly in Yuuri's direction. The last two times Victor had guided his car toward the Katsukis, the thrill of nerves had vibrated underneath his skin fueled by uncertainty and determination. This time, turning up the hill that lead towards his found family, Victor only felt excitement fluttering in his chest.

In truth, Victor had felt incredibly exuberant the entire day. From waking up to Yuuri snuggled into him to the hours spent laughing with their best friends, Victor had experienced every moment as if the light in his life had finally been turned on. Yuuri still teased him and their banter was as sharp as ever, but the attraction and arousal those interactions had always brought Victor was allowed to exist now. No more hiding from the way that Yuuri's quick wit and biting retorts made his mind and body react with overwhelming lust.

Reaching over the center console, Victor offered his hand to Yuuri, lacing their fingers together and enjoying the way they fit so easily. Lines of poetic prose danced in Victor's mind creating a metaphor for their relationship out of their perfectly fitted hands. Smiling at his own romanticism, Victor raised Yuuri's hand to softly kiss his knuckles.

"You know…" Yuuri started, words fading when Victor gently traced the space between his fingers with the tip of his tongue. "You're the first guy I have ever brought home." Carefully watching the realization creep over Victor's face, Yuuri looked away when the blush flooded his own cheeks. "You know, besides all of those purposefully terrible set ups. Sometimes I wonder if that taxidermist ever found the furry love he was looking for…"

Huffing out his laugh, Victor rolled his eyes at Yuuri's silliness. "I… almost forgot about that with everything that's happened. Sometimes I can't believe it's barely been a week since you drunkenly seduced me." He laughed again when Yuuri bit his shoulder.

"I don't remember doing any seducing. I'm pretty sure it was all your fault." Tilting his chin toward the ceiling, Yuuri tapped his index finger on his chin as if recalling all of the events of that night.

"You stood in the middle of my bed, almost naked and stretching. Stretching, Yuuri." The mental image still made Victor's body stir with excitement, even though logically he knew it should be the least appealing of his memories from that night.

"Oh god." Heat flushed over Yuuri's cheeks as the moment came back to him, the mental image of himself being absolutely absurd making him slap his free hand over his face. "Why… why did I do that?" Shifting forward to jokingly bang his head on the dashboard, Yuuri felt his embarrassment tinted with amusement by the way Victor was fondly giggling. Eyes dropped to the floor of Victor's car, Yuuri paused in his self-loathing regret when he spotted a familiar notebook tucked into the door pocket.

"What the-" Yuuri started to ask, straining against the seatbelt to dislodge the notebook that was distinctly covered in his handwriting. Flipping the pages open, he felt another wave of blush crashing over him.

"Oh…" Victor reluctantly moved his hand to the wheel when Yuuri had wiggled free from its hold, both of Yuuri's hands now erratically flipping the pages of the spiral notebook. Even with his eyes on the road, Victor caught glimpses of Yuuri's doodles and scribblings, making his stomach fill with happy butterflies again. "Um… well… Your mom gave that to me… You know, before I drove out to romantically confess my undying love for you."

Peeking in Yuuri's direction, Victor noted the darkening pink of Yuuri's cheeks. Never passing up an opportunity to tease, Victor reached out to pat Yuuri's head. "I especially like the doodle on page 15, the one where you are kissing me to shut me up. Very creative." Though he wouldn't admit it, Victor had definitely memorized the details and location of all his favorite parts of college Yuuri's scribblings.

Closing his eyes, Yuuri once again found himself trying to remember that murder was a criminal offense. "I can't believe she saved this. And gave it to you. And I thought they loved me." Smacking the book against his forehead, Yuuri wondered if it was possible to die of his own shame.

"I think it's so sweet you had a crush on me!" Winking at Yuuri, Victor continued to grin in delight. "It must be embarrassing how much time you spent pining over me."

"We're dating." Glaring at the side of Victor's face, Yuuri wished he could actually kiss his boyfriend to shut him up.

"But still… all that time you spent fighting with me! When you were really swooning over me!" You're such a sap, my Yuuri!" Using an overly saccharine voice, Victor knew he was pushing all of Yuuri's buttons in a way that only he could achieve.

"I wonder what the record is for speed of moving in with a boyfriend and then promptly moving out?" Crossing his arms over his chest, Yuuri stared out of the window determined to tune out Victor's laughter. Maybe once they were home, Yuuri would reach out to Victor's family and see if there is any chance that Victor had embarrassing pining secrets of his own.

Silence settled in the car again, broken only by the sound of Victor happily humming of some tune that Yuuri didn't recognize. Yuuri felt himself relax into the comfort of their joint existence, his pout slowly fading from his face to be replaced by a relaxed smile. Watching the line of trees break to reveal the camp property, an idea grew in Yuuri's mind. "Hey _Vitya_ ," Yuuri grinned at the small sound of shocked pleasure that escaped Victor. "How much do you love me?"

Mind still shaken from the way Yuuri had said Vitya, Victor took a minute to respond. "More than Phichit loves forcing Seung Gil to watch marathon replays of the King and the Skater."

Leaning across the center console, Yuuri rested his head on Victor's shoulder. "Alright… to prove your love, all I ask is… play along with whatever happens while we're at dinner. Just… go with anything I say." Trailing his knuckles up the inside of Victor's thigh, Yuuri watched as Victor shifted to allow him better access. "If you do… I promise to reward you handsomely."

"It that a bribe, counselor?" Victor failed to keep the breathlessness out of his voice, a near Herculean feat with the way Yuuri's voice and the teasing of Yuuri's hand were stroking the most desperate parts of his libido. Someday, the thought of Yuuri touching him wouldn't wreck Victor completely, but today was certainly not that day.

"Bribe…" Yuuri let his fingertips brush over the hint of Victor's arousal straining under the zipper of his shorts, "reward…" Twisting slightly, Yuuri drifted soft kisses over Victor's neck, "it's one of those two…" Feeling the car slow down, Yuuri spared a glance for the front porch of his parents' house, spying his mother excitedly waving. "Do we have a deal?"

Swallowing hard around the lump in his throat, Victor internally recited the newest state law amendments in order to combat his raging need to throw Yuuri into the backseat. Lifting a shaky hand to wave at Mama Katsuki, Victor managed to nod his head when Yuuri gave him one last promising squeeze.

Whatever Yuuri had in mind for dinner, Victor was positive about two facts. It involved revenge and Victor was not ready.

* * *

Although Yuuri's parents had been more excitable than usual and Mari's knowing smirks had tripled in occurrence, dinner had been mostly uneventful, leaving Victor with an unidentifiable sense of unease.

Being next to Yuuri at the table, feeling Yuuri's thigh move to press closer to Victor's own, had been thrilling and wonderful. Letting himself openly enjoy the adorableness of Yuuri scarfing down two entire bowls of katsudon also had a special sense of happiness settling into Victor's heart. No more hiding his adoration of his favorite person was required and Victor was living for every second of that reality.

Up until Mama Katsuki brought out two plates stacked with sweets, sliding them across the table with a simple question about when they would start planning their wedding.

In truth, Victor should have anticipated the question, instead of choking on his tea. She had been the woman purposefully torturing her own son with the worst blind dates in history, so her Phichit-levels of enthusiasm for true love finally found should not have caught him off guard. Even with that understanding, Victor still felt his mind stuttering for an answer that didn't led him to one knee immediately.

"Oh," Yuuri responded casually, loving the fact that when Victor was around for dinner it always meant lots and lots of desserts. Licking powdered sugar off of his finger, Yuuri remained casually aloof while inside he was extremely excited that his moment had finally arrived. "There's a plane headed for Vegas on Tuesday night. Since neither of us have anything on our schedules for Wednesday or Thursday, I booked us two tickets. Why wait another minute, right?"

Silence hung in the room as the three Katsukis stared at Yuuri with dropped jaws. Shrugging with fake nonchalance, Yuuri wrapped his arm around Victor's shoulders. "I mean, we don't need a fancy wedding or anything. Darth Vader will make a wonderful officiant and Victor and I even have matching storm trooper outfits, blue for me, this pinkish color for him. Much classier than Elvis, isn't that what we agreed, darling?"

Victor had promised to go along with whatever Yuuri threw at him, but his mind had never even ventured near the possibility of devastating their family with the concept of an elopement. Even worse, a Star Wars themed elopement. Shoving down his own horror at the mental image forcing its way into his mind, Victor cranked up his best fake smile. "Truly, it will be a magnificent affair. Then we'll get wildly drunk and gamble the night away. It's a wedding and a honeymoon in one, how did I get so lucky?" The fact that Victor spoke without wincing was truly a miracle.

"I'm the lucky one," Yuuri cooed, scooting closer to Victor to plant a kiss to his cheek. His parents had never witnessed Yuuri willingly participating in public affection and he felt a little evil for tossing it on top of their already shocked silence.

"Little brother…" Mari's tone was full of warning, her chair scrapping over the floor as she pushed it backwards. "This better be a joke." Her eyes were narrowed when Yuuri met them across the table.

"Big sister, why would I joke about something so serious?" Angling his head to add to his own falsified innocence, Yuuri waited only a beat before continuing. "After all, our mother tried so hard to find me love… and none of those men were anything like Victor. I wouldn't want to break her heart by forcing her to watch me marry someone who clearly is outside of her standards."

"Katsuki Yuuri."

Almost breaking at the sound of his name being formally spoken by his mother, Yuuri turned to face the woman he loved most in the world. Under his hand, Yuuri felt Victor's shoulders tense and he massaged his thumb in a small circle. "Yes, mother?" Yuuri answered, finding the stern look on her face amusing.

"Vitya told you." Her smile became softer as she glanced to Victor's face, which Yuuri noted looked suspiciously sheepish.

"Honestly, what was she supposed to do, Yuuri?" Mari leaned her elbows on the table. "Continue to let you live life with your head shoved inside your own ass?" She snickered when their father burst into a bright laugh.

"And people think I'm the prankster," Yuuri's dad joked, slapping a hand to his belly. "We all know you wouldn't elope with Victor. Or should I go track down that other notebook with the sketches of your future wedding right here at home?"

This time, it was Yuuri choking on his tea, Victor's hand coming up to pat him on the back while Victor's focus moved across the table. "I will pay _anything_ to get my hands on that book." Victor joined Papa Katsuki in his laughter when Yuuri tried to shove him out of his chair.

"Worst family ever," Yuuri muttered into the lip of his tea cup, his smile betraying the lie in his words. His happiness flourished as he listened to Victor barter with his father over the price of a notebook Yuuri knew none of them would ever find.

Because Yuuri had already stolen away during dinner to recover that exact piece of contraband and hide it in his own bag.

Taking the jabs his sister threw at him over his own horrible joke, Yuuri settled into the rest of his evening surrounded by his amazing family and even more amazing boyfriend.

* * *

Standing over the sink, Yuuri slowly brushed his teeth while watching Victor applying night cream to his face. This moment could have been any of the hundreds of moments they had shared like this as roommates, standing half asleep or half sober in their shared bathroom getting ready for bed in their apartment. Yet this moment was completely different. Every second, every shared glance, felt like the epitome of domestic bliss and Yuuri was positive his heart couldn't get any happier.

"You keep looking at me," Victor pointed out, making a silly face in the mirror to make Yuuri laugh. "Some of us care about our skin, you know." Over the years every one of his friends had taken their turn at poking at Victor's skin care regime, but when they were all fifty and Victor looked thirty-five, he knew he would have the last laugh.

Tapping his toothbrush on the side of the sink, Yuuri hoisted himself up on the counter, using his left hand to guide Victor between his spread thighs. "I'm just admiring your beauty." Running his fingers lightly over Victor's hips, Yuuri's mouth twitched as he took in the shiny brilliance of Victor's exposed forehead. "So much beauty. Especially… in this area…" He waved his hand in a broad circle near Victor's forehead, snorting when Victor frowned.

"Forehead jokes, really Katsuki? Really?" Before Yuuri could respond, Victor scooped him up and threw him over his shoulder. Both dogs excitedly danced around Victor's feet, obviously enjoying the potential for a wrestling match. Over Yuuri's squeals of protest, Victor marched toward the bedroom only addressing the dogs. "Your daddy thinks he is funny. Well, we'll show him won't we?" Dumping Yuuri on the bed, Victor waved his hand. "Go get him!" he commanded the dogs, laughing when the dogs leapt onto the bed and began to cover Yuuri in kisses.

Flicking off the bedroom light, Victor took a running leap into the bed to join in the dog pile, adding his own tickling fingers into the mix. The sounds of their laughter mixed with the dogs' happy barks filled the entirety of their bedroom until they were all sprawled and panting over the bed.

"I can't believe you threw me to the dogs," Yuuri teased, flicking Victor on the nose. "And here I thought you loved me." He grinned when Victor flopped on top of him. "Shiny," he teased, poking Victor in the forehead.

"Don't start with me," Victor warned, grabbing Yuuri's wrist and pinning it to the bed above his head. "I don't think I have any more left in me after today. I just want to snuggle up to my boyfriend, who I still love despite all of his terribly wounding jokes, and go off to dreamland."

"Sounds good." Leaning up, Yuuri pecked a kiss to Victor's forehead. "I need to go pull out my suit for tomorrow though and I'll be right back."

Happiness drained from Victor's mind as he remembered exactly why Yuuri needed a suit. Rolling to the side, he muttered "sure thing" before pulling back the covers on his side of the bed. Recalling Yuuri's scheduled interaction with JJ left Victor with a pit in his stomach that he couldn't and wouldn't explain.

Victor's sudden drop in mood made Yuuri's own stomach feel sour. Crawling out of the bed, Yuuri left the room without looking back, determined to force himself to calm down. Dealing with JJ, _apologizing_ to JJ, was the right decision, even if it was painful for himself and Victor.

Taking longer than necessary to hang his dark gray linen suit on the back of the closet, Yuuri tried desperately to swallow down the sickness building inside of him. At most his interaction with JJ would last a couple of hours, but his relationship with Victor was meant to last him a lifetime. Stealing himself for an unpleasant conversation, Yuuri padded back into the room.

Victor's back was facing him, an unusual sight considering they had fallen asleep mostly naked and tangled together every other night that they had shared a bed over the last week. With body language that clearly stated Victor was uninterested in discussing the change in mood, Yuuri was unsure of how to proceed. Pulling back the covers on his own side, Yuuri slid into the bed and curled around Victor's back.

Part of him wanted to shove Yuuri away, put distance between them because of the prickly sensation under Victor's skin which erupted every time JJ's existence was even hinted at. His heart wasn't on board with his brain though. Sighing, Victor unwillingly sank back into Yuuri's arms while he buried his face deeper into his own pillow. "I don't like it," he muttered, knowing that he sounded like a petulant child.

"Does it help to know that I don't like it either?" Yuuri ran his hand down Victor's arm, nuzzling his nose into the back of Victor's neck. "But I owe JJ an apology, even if you don't think I do. I wasn't fair to him. Honestly, I could've never given my heart to anyone else, when it always belonged to you. And he needs to know that. I need to tell him that. He needs to know that no matter what he did, I could've never been anything but yours." Pressing on Victor's shoulder, Yuuri could feel the tears catching in the corners of his eyes when Victor finally rolled over to look at him.

"Don't be sweet when I want to be grumpy." Laying back on his pillow, Victor lifted a hand to swipe away the tear that was threatening to run down Yuuri's cheek. "Just… come to me once you're finished, okay? Come to me and let me kiss you and hold you and… I don't know… wipe his face from your memory forever…" Yes, it was a ridiculous desire and no, Victor did not care.

"That I can do." Yuuri promised, leaning down to kiss Victor softly.

They curled together in the bed, both of them faking sleep while their minds raced in separate directions.

* * *

The dread was painful in the pit of Yuuri's stomach, leaving him feeling uncomfortable in his own skin. His decision was unwavering and yet his head swam with uncertainty, questioning why he believed any of this was necessary. Victor's anxious silence and tight smile throughout their morning together plagued very second of Yuuri's thoughts, making his stomach tighten as he gripped the handle of his briefcase.

Was giving JJ closure really important enough to make Victor look so miserable? Why was Yuuri even convinced that it must be done? Brow furrowed and headache building behind his eyes, Yuuri tried to school his face into a neutral expression as he flashed his attorney badge and ducked around the line of people waiting to pass through the metal detector.

Several people called to him and offered handshakes, all of them expressing their happiness over seeing his face in the courtroom hallways again. On a hallway bench, Chris was sitting with clients of his own, sparring only a nod of his head as Yuuri strode past him. Training his eyes to his destination, Yuuri almost stopped walking when he saw JJ waiting with his head resting in his hands.

Straightening his shoulders, Yuuri curled his hand one more time on his briefcase, reaching up to unnecessarily tug his tie which already hung snugly in place. Clearing his throat, Yuuri stopped outside of JJ's personal space, waiting until JJ acknowledged him.

The moment JJ's eyes met his own, Yuuri knew that he had made the right decision.

"Where's your asshole partner?"

The venom in JJ's voice was laced with defeated disdain, but the way he shifted to stand and take a step back almost made Yuuri feel guilty. It hadn't been JJ alone in that kiss in his office lobby and although it felt like it had happened forever ago, the taste was too easy to recall on Yuuri's own lips. "I don't think he was the best match for your representation and offered to take over."

"And you thought that was wise?" Shoving his hands in his pockets, JJ looked like a mix of defeated yet determined, his jaw clenching when he looked at Yuuri.

"I thought…" Yuuri shrugged, wishing he could pull his courtroom persona over him like armor. "I thought we could get through the next half hour or so and then I could buy you coffee. The cart outside is the best around and I know how you like your macchiatos."

When JJ's shoulders released their defensive tension, Yuuri felt a slight thread of hope weaving its way through his stomach full of doubts. Although JJ's only confirmation of the invitation was a noncommittal shrug of his shoulders, Yuuri took that as a win. Nodding toward the doors to the courtroom, Yuuri gestured with his briefcase and led JJ inside.

* * *

Balancing two coffee cups and his briefcase, Yuuri made his way to JJ who had taken up space on a bench underneath the courthouse's largest tree. Handing over JJ's overly sweet drink, Yuuri took a sip of his own bitterly black coffee before lowering himself to sit on the bench.

"Thanks," JJ said, slowly spinning the cup in his hands. "I feel like I should have bought you coffee, considering you're the reason I can go get my license back."

Studying the side of JJ's face, Yuuri let himself smile. "It's my job to make sure you get your license back. I would be a pretty terrible attorney if it had gone any other way." He saw JJ smile at that comment and allowed himself to relax a little. "You were right, you know." Yuuri raised his cup to his lips and watched JJ out of the corner of his eye.

"Usually am," JJ leaned back, finally drinking from his paper cup and regaining some of his patented JJ cockiness. "What about this time, though?" Finally meeting Yuuri's eyes, JJ squinted in the light of the sun.

"Victor," Yuuri said simply, resting his mug on his knee. "I'm in love with him. Probably have been since the moment he started arguing with me. It just took you to finally help me see it."

Frowning, JJ tapped his finger against his cup. "Glad I was of some use then." His frown deepened and he shook his head like there was something else he wanted to say.

"You deserved better from me." Fidgeting, Yuuri tried to gather the words he had rehearsed in the shower that morning. "JJ, you are a great guy and you were good to me. When we were together, even though it was short, it was before I knew that my heart wasn't mine to give. I was an idiot, and you were the victim, and… I'm sorry."

"Didn't know you knew that word," JJ retorted. Sighing, his head dropped back, face turning toward the branches above them. "It's alright. I'm happy now. If you hadn't let me go, I wouldn't have found my Isabella…. And in a way I guess I get it now. For everything I thought we could've had… I have it with her. I've never had doubts with her, I know where I belong."

"How do you know?" The question was out before Yuuri could stop it, blurting from the depths of his mind and spilling his own undefined uncertainties into the world. His heart believed Victor was his forever, but for some reason, his mind was resisting the invitation to join the bandwagon.

Staring with a look of pure incredulousness, JJ nearly let his coffee slip out of his hand. "You're asking me… for what? Relationship advice?"

The words sounded absurd as soon as they were voiced and Yuuri shook his head. "No, sorry… I… that was weird… just ignore it." Waving his hand, Yuuri turned away from JJ and took a swig from his coffee. He felt the wood planks of the bench shift when JJ stood.

Walking a few steps away, JJ stopped and looked over his shoulder. "I can't ever be your friend Yuuri. It wouldn't be fair to my heart or to Isabella because… part of me will always wonder." Brows pinched in thought, JJ traced his finger over the rim of his coffee cup. "I do… I do want you to be happy though… so, hmmph… I… well, I'll tell you this." Turning to move a step closer, JJ lowered his hand to Yuuri's shoulder. "Stop overthinking. Love with your heart, not your head. Because your head is lodged in your ass most of the time."

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Yuuri asked, returning JJ's smile with an exasperated one of this own.

Laughing, JJ took another drink from his cup as he patted Yuuri's shoulder once. "Goodbye, Yuuri." Turning on his heel, JJ walked away, never looking back as he crossed the parking lot toward his car.

Alone on the bench, Yuuri stared at his coffee cup as his swirling thoughts settled. The mental dust cleared leaving only the image of Victor. Smiling, beautiful Victor who loved Yuuri through all the twists and turns of the last ten years of their life.

Chuckling in response to the realizations rising in his mind, Yuuri stood and tossed his coffee cup into the nearest trash can. He had promised Victor that he would come straight back to the office after court, but if he hurried he would have time for a needed stop before doing so. Slipping his suit jacket off of his shoulders and pulling off his tie, Yuuri excitedly rushed for his car with all of his plans dancing in his head.

* * *

A pen struck the wall with an unsatisfying clatter as Victor banged his head onto his desk. Two hours and forty-nine minutes had passed since he had kissed Yuuri goodbye that morning, and Victor knew the last strands of his sanity were starting to fray.

Coming into the office had seemed like the best solution for his nervous energy. Mila had picked up the dogs for their walk only a few minutes after Yuuri's car had disappeared from sight, leaving Victor by himself to deal with his useless ball of anxiety. Bouncing on his toes, Victor had lasted less than five minutes in his empty house before he found himself pulling on his closest set of dress pants and lightest-weight dress shirt.

Unfortunately, discovering the office devoid of human life hadn't been the distraction Victor was looking for. Not even the interns were around for him to harass, although their impressive weekend handiwork was confirmation that they were aware of his and Yuuri's newfound relationship status. Victor's busiest moments had been trying to round up all of the "No Sex in the Office" signs that had been plastered over every open space of wall throughout each room, including the conference room and the bathroom.

Case files were stacked on Victor's desk, mocking him with their need for attention and making Victor want to take a turn at throwing them at the wall. The pen had been disappointing in its dulled sound and Victor eyed his top file as he decided whether the mess of papers would be worth it for a more satisfying thud. A gentle knock on his door had Victor's head shooting up, his eyes watering as soon as he saw Yuuri leaning casually on his doorframe.

"Need to add another tally to my win column," Yuuri joked, eyes catching the way Victor's hair was unkempt and lingering red around Victor's eyes. Yuuri hated when Victor looked stressed and immediately dropped his need to taunt him, crossing the room to sit on Victor's desk instead. Lifting the top paper from a crinkled stack on Victor's desk, Yuuri held it up. "Are you trying to tell me something?" Flipping it around, Yuuri held the "No naked butts ALLOWED" sign in Victor's direction.

"Your naked butt is always allowed," Victor weakly joked, reaching behind Yuuri to pinch said butt. Already Victor could feel his wildly obsessive thoughts trickle into nonexistence. "I believe this is our interns' way of congratulating us." Resting his chin on Yuuri's knee, Victor resisted the urge to immediately fire away all the questions on the tip of his tongue.

"And here I thought they didn't care," Yuuri folded the paper carefully between his hands, creating a paper airplane which he promptly launched into Victor's trashcan. "Good thing they don't make the rules around here." Gripping Victor by the collar of his dress shirt, Yuuri pulled his boyfriend into a deep kiss.

He let the kiss linger, drinking the taste of Victor as if he would ever be able to memorize the feeling of Victor's lips moving over his own. The sensation was destined to always turn Yuuri's mind to lustful mush, and he loved every aspect of that fact. Finally releasing Victor so they could both breathe, Yuuri whispered, "Hi," before sitting back.

"I want you to always greet me that way," Victor demanded, wiggling closer and wrapping his arms around Yuuri's waist. The position was awkward, but Victor needed the closeness after the anxious storm that had stalked him all morning. "So…" he couldn't force the words out of his throat, flicking his gaze to meet Yuuri's eyes before looking away.

"It was fine." Combing his fingers through Victor's hair, Yuuri felt his heart melting at the way Victor relaxed under his touch. "He called you an asshole, told me my head was up my ass, pretty standard." Yuuri smiled when Victor sat back to frown at him. "I apologized, which I should have done a long time ago. He's happy and gone now, and weirdly supportive of our happiness. No more hating JJ, he's the past, but you're my future… okay?"

Feeling the weight of the world slip off his shoulders, Victor buried his face in Yuuri's stomach, clinging tighter to the man he adored. There had been absolutely no reason to worry about JJ or Yuuri, and Victor acknowledged his own absurdity as he let it fade forever. "I love you," Victor whispered into Yuuri's stomach, smiling harder when Yuuri curled forward to return the whispered sentiment.

Uncurling, Yuuri reached behind his back to unlatch Victor's hands. "Will you go somewhere with me?" Yuuri asked, sliding off of the desk and pulling Victor toward the door. His heart finally felt like it could settle into a steady rhythm when Victor's smile reached all the way to his eyes.

Shutting down his computer with his free hand, Victor stepped away from his chair and closer to Yuuri. Gently tapping his thumb on the curve of Yuuri's cheek, Victor cocked his head and smiled. "Yuuri, I'll go wherever you want me to." Chuckling when Yuuri whispered "good" Victor let himself be pulled from the office, flicking off the lights as he went and telling himself to trust Yuuri to lead him toward happiness.

* * *

Stars stretched above them, hanging in the sky and blinking brightly through the gap in the rustling trees. Among them, the moon had just begun to shine with the sun's borrowed light, hanging full and promising over their heads. Trees shifted in the summer breeze, brushing leaves filling the peaceful silence with their natural song.

Leaning his head back on the windshield, Victor turned his gaze to the sky, not looking when Yuuri hopped up to join him. The picnic basket Yuuri had surprised Victor with before their drive had been stowed safely in the car and now it was just them and the stars. Smiling when Yuuri pressed closer, Victor snuck a peak at his boyfriend.

Yuuri looked beautiful highlighted by the light of the night sky, his eyes shining behind his glasses and his smile peacefully happy. The tension Victor had watched build since the night before had finally disappeared and Victor could see where the worry lines had eased from Yuuri's forehead.

This was the Yuuri Victor had fallen in love with. The Yuuri who only existed when it was the two of them. On the first night they had discovered this hill, mildly intoxicated and overworked from studying for their first set of college finals, they had sprawled on the grass and shivered against each other to ward off the growing December cold. Under the same patch of stars, Victor had seen the way Yuuri could let go of all the stress of school and heard the way Yuuri could laugh when the pressure fell away.

That was the night Victor had fallen in love.

It was almost ten years ago.

"Are you staring at me?"

Yuuri's question interrupted Victor's thoughts and had him snapping his head back to the stars. "No," he lied, feeling Yuuri's finger poke him on the cheek. Pretending to bite at Yuuri's finger, Victor laughed when Yuuri did, settling back into his place and lacing his fingers together over his stomach. "Where do you think we'll be in ten years?"

"Hm." Caught off guard by the question, Yuuri took a minute to mull it over. Ten years ago, he would've laughed and said probably doing exactly what they are doing right now. Weirdly, he would have been right and for some reason that made his heart flutter. Somehow they had come so far and yet, found their ways to each other. Almost as if they had to grow up to grow together.

The thought settled in Yuuri's mind giving him a sense of peace about their last decade together. They had been through so much and yet it seemed as if nothing really had happened at all. Oddly, none of it bothered Yuuri.

Feeling Victor nudge his side, Yuuri shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe we'll be running the most successful small firm in our town. Or be judges… or worse… politicians." He snorted when Victor made a disapproving face, shaking his head before tucking it on Victor's shoulder. "You?"

The idea of the future used to plague Victor's mind, chase him until he was obsessively pondering his next move and the next step he could make in his life. For the first time, he wasn't one hundred percent positive what would happen next, but he was okay with it.

Offering his hand palm up to Yuuri, Victor pulled Yuuri's hand towards his lips to kiss Yuuri's knuckles. "I have no idea where we'll be… but I know will be together."

"Best friends?" Yuuri teased, pecking a kiss to Victor's cheek.

"That…" Victor twisted onto his side, tucking Yuuri's hand into his chest. "And partners, in all things."

"Partners," Yuuri smiled, tilting his chin to improve the angle for the kiss Victor happily granted him. "I can live with that."

Laying on his side, Yuuri took his own turn at watching Victor watch the stars. Every minute of their spontaneous five hour drive had been worth it to find himself in this moment with Victor right now. This had been the first place that Yuuri had truly understood how beautiful Victor was, and not just on the outside. For every ounce of physical beauty Victor possessed, his soul held double that amount and Yuuri silently promised himself to never stop admiring all of the breathtaking parts of Victor.

"Now you're staring," Victor teased, turning his head to smile at Yuuri. The sparkle of Yuuri's eyes reminded Victor of all the times he wondered what it would be like to kiss him. Resting a gentle hand on Yuuri's cheek, Victor sighed. "I used to… wonder what it would be like to kiss you. Every time we came here, I would try to convince myself that I would do it." Tracing a thumb over Yuuri's bottom lip, Victor let the memories flip through his mind. "Then I would make excuses to myself… mostly about friendship and being convinced you didn't like me… like _that_. I just… I wonder if things would be different… if I had…" He trailed off, finally meeting Yuuri's eyes again.

"I did the same thing," Yuuri admitted, fingers fiddling with the buttons of Victor's shirt. "But I thought I was too plain… or too boring… or not what you deserved at all. I wanted you to have everything you wanted, and I never thought I was on that list." Curling a finger into the gap of Victor's shirt, Yuuri encouraged him to move closer. "Weird how it only took like ten years and one really drunken night to finally make it happen." With an impish smirk, Yuuri looked up at Victor.

"And years of Phichit's badgering probably played a part." Victor lightly traced Yuuri's nose with the tip of his own. "But really… I think it was more that red shirt. I really _love_ that shirt…" Lacing his fingers in the hair at the back of Yuuri's head, Victor pulled him even closer. "In fact, maybe you could wear it again when we get home… and reenact that little stretching move…" He grinned when Yuuri nipped at his lip with a growl, capturing Yuuri in a kiss which was immediately broken by their mutual laughter.

The sounds of their happiness lifted through the trees as they cuddled closer to look to the stars. "Remember the shooting star wishes?" Yuuri whispered, recalling his own wishes for passed exams and acceptances to law school. Selfish wishes for things that Yuuri was able to achieve for himself through hard work and not because of some wish carried on a star.

Humming, Victor acknowledged Yuuri's words as his mind trailed to his own wishes about true love and finding happiness. His wishes were always too broad to come true, at least that's what he had told himself after every failed relationship. As it turned out, he had simply been unwilling to look in the one place where he eventually found both.

As if on cue, a trail of light curved over the sky causing both of them to gasp. Counting together, they closed their eyes when they reached the number one, both making silent wishes on the falling star.

Yuuri wished for Victor to always be happy in life and to always know how much he is loved.

Victor wished for Yuuri to always understand how much love and support he deserves.

Both of them wished that no matter where they went, no matter what happened from that moment forward, that they would always be together like they had been since their very first argument.

And life would certainly bring them more arguments, disputes both personal and professional which they could argue with the emotional parts of their hearts and solve with the help of their logical minds. There would be tally marks in the win columns and angry dashes in the loss columns, but together they would survive the failures and celebrate the successes.

Life hadn't promised them the ten years they had already gotten together and no one could promise them the next ten years, but they had both proven to themselves and the world how stubborn they could be when it came to one another.

Their stubbornness had once been what had held them back from each other, allowed each of them to doubt their own hearts and fail to trust their own instincts. A million missed moments and only a handful of daring chances had led them to back to this hill. Back to where they had both fallen in love before either of them was ready to handle it.

Their friendship had become unbreakable, a steady force when the world was the shakiest. A beautiful balance of the fire of witty banter and the warmth of loving comfort. Over their years as friends they had learned to love and accept all the complicated pieces of each other's hearts, giving them a sturdy foundation on which to build all of their coming years.

But under the stars of the place where they had both fallen in love, Yuuri and Victor both found that words still failed them. Rings remained hidden in both of their pockets waiting for the courage to ask the questions that would seal their forever.

And whether the courage ever came, or if it took another ten years for either of them to find their way onto one knee, they would steadily work together to define and redefine, over and over, what it meant to be someone's partner… in all senses of the word.


	10. Chapter 10

The bathroom was quiet, an eerie silence that reminded Victor how alone he was in that moment. His reflection in the mirror mocked him, appearing calmer and more collected than Victor felt inside.

The wrinkles around his eyes were the evidence of years of laughter, the frown lines on his forehead the reminders of the hours of worry and research which had kept him at the top of his game. None of his time had ever been squandered and the signs of his aging years were written in every dip and difference in his once flawless skin.

Yet, Victor didn't hate it the way he thought he would. Years had been spent attempting to preserve his youth, despite his gray hair at an unfairly early age and the way he had always spoken in court like he had years more experience that were actually his to claim. His reflection was that of a distinguished man, one who knew what he wanted and went after every goal with the full strength of his determination.

None of that experience, however, could have prepared him for the gravity of what came next.

Nervously bouncing on the balls of his feet, Victor continued to inspect his reflection in the bathroom mirror, adjusting his tie for the hundredth time that morning. To himself, he looked nervous and he braced his hands on the curve of the sink to force himself closer to a sense of calm.

Footsteps in the hallway made him take a deep breath, standing tall so as to appear collected. The door swung open and Victor let out a sigh of relief at the face he discovered staring back at him. "Oh, it's you."

"Don't sound so enthusiastic," Yuuri deadpanned, quickly crossing the tile floor. "What have you done to yourself?" he laughed, pulling on Victor's lapels and sorting out the mess Victor had made with his tie. There were a few fly-aways attempting to escape Victor's normally flawless hair making Yuuri roll his eyes as he smoothed them back into place. "A little nervous, are we?" Yuuri asked, dropping his hands and stepping back to survey Victor's formal wear with a discerning eye.

"As a matter of fact I am. Why aren't you?" Flicking his wrist in Yuuri's direction, Victor felt the irrational irritation of Yuuri's calm smile climb under his skin.

"Because it's not my ceremony, silly." Lifting a hand to once again comb through the tangles Victor had caused in his own bangs, Yuuri shook his head. "It's you standing up in front of all those people, not me."

"You'll be in the front row though, right?" Victor grabbed Yuuri's hand and squeezed it. "You promised to sit right up front." Trying to imagine any instance where Yuuri wouldn't be within a few feet to support him made Victor's already anxious mind whirl into a frenzy.

"If I could stand next to you I would, but we both know that wouldn't be appropriate." Laughing at Victor's pout, Yuuri shook his head again. "Alright counselor, you can do this. Just pretend it's a courtroom full of people you're trying to impress. Go out there and embrace your inner peacock."

"I don't like your attempts at metaphors, Yuuri Katsuki." Resisting as Yuuri began to push his back, Victor wiggled in Yuuri's hold. His spun on his heel fast enough to topple Yuuri forward. "Hug me for good luck," Victor requested, his voice quiet and nervous.

"Any time," Yuuri agreed, wrapping his arms around Victor's back and lending his support to his best friend on the most important day of Victor's life. "Now, you have to go. They are all waiting for you." Hooking their arms together, Yuuri marched Victor from the bathroom and toward his future.

* * *

Slipping into his seat next to Phichit, Yuuri smiled at Seung Gil and nodded at Chris where he stood. "He's a little nervous." Yuuri whispered, smiling at Victor when he waved at Yuuri from his place. "Honestly, I would be a dysfunctional mess in his position." He smiled fondly as he watched Victor fidgeting with the cuffs of his shirt, his head nodding in small succinct gestures as he received another run through of his instructions.

"You are a dysfunctional mess in any position," Phichit whispered, undeterred by Seung Gil's attempts to shush him. "I still can't believe its Victor and Chris and not you. That's forever going to blow my mind."

Rolling his eyes at Phichit's never-ending opinion on the matter, Yuuri settled further into his spot on the wooden pew. "I didn't even want to do it, Phichit! Chris is a good match, he'll be fine. Plus he'll have Victor and really there was no one better than Victor." Yuuri grinned as Victor shook hands with the approaching judge at the front of the room.

"You're not biased or anything," Seung Gil teased from his place next to Phichit, snickering when Yuuri glared at him. "And it's not just because you have a kink for guys in robes is it?" This time it was Phichit who shushed Seung Gil as Yuuri's cheeks turned a heated shade of dark red.

Trying to ignore the jabs coming from his friends, Yuuri turned to survey the room. Familiar faces lined every pew, each of them dressed to impress in their best power suits. Yuuri's family sat a few rows behind him, sharing a pew with Victor's family and twisting backwards to exchange pleasantries with the members of Phichit's and Seung Gil's families who were able to fly in for the celebration.

The sheer size of the guest list had made Yuuri's head swim. The calculations on how all of the people would fit in the room for the formal ceremony and then also be accommodated at the reception location were beyond his comprehension, leaving him feeling eternally grateful that all those details were someone else's problems. He planned to enjoy this day and celebrate Victor to the best of his ability.

Part of Yuuri felt a bittersweet sting as he observed the excitement around him. When they had graduated college, and law school, and even been sworn in as attorneys, Yuuri had been able to stand by Victor's side. This adventure would be the first time that Victor would stand without Yuuri and Yuuri could feel the emotions welling inside of him, a mixture of happiness and a sense of being left behind. Luckily, his pride in Victor's determination to chase his own happiness easily eclipsed all of Yuuri's stirred up feelings.

A sharp clearing of Judge Baranovskaya's throat had them all quieting down, focusing on the front of the room where the most severe judge in their district stood ready to oversee Victor's next step in life.

"Hello colleagues, friends, and family. It is my honor to welcome you to the investiture of the new Honorable Victor Nikiforov. As the head judge of this court, I am pleased to be a part of this ceremony and happily welcome Judge Nikiforov to serve as an officer, leader, and representative of this court. Your honor, please step forward to give your oath."

From his place on the hard wooden bench, Yuuri could feel the tears running freely down his cheeks as Victor raised his right hand and repeated the oath read by Judge Baranovskaya. Once the oath was complete, Victor would address the court as the newest appointed judge and finally give the speech Yuuri had been listening to him practice for weeks. A speech that started with an anecdote about how much could change in ten years and ended with a promise to make all the years of Victor's service the best he could possibly give. It was a speech that was worthy of a judge and Yuuri felt a surge of powerful pride over his husband's accomplishments as Victor was handed his first gavel and sat down to give his first speech as The Honorable Victor Nikiforov.

Later there would be a celebration at their favorite bar, complete with alcohol and all the food that their three hundred guests could handle. Next week, the process would repeat for Chris's swearing in and that party was sure to be even more outlandish than the one Yuuri had happily watched Victor plan.

This moment, however, was searing itself in Yuuri's memory as he watched Victor settle on the judge's bench for the first time, the reverent smile dancing over Victor's face as he sought Yuuri's eyes in the crowd.

Looking down from his new seat, Victor felt the flutter of nerves dancing in the back of his throat. As an attorney, he had treated courtrooms like a stage, using every ounce of his flare and knowledge to help his clients in every way he knew how. But sitting as a judge, he would now have the power to help so many more people. The knowledge of that responsibility and the responsibility he had to uphold justice and fairness made Victor feel light-headed.

Peering down into the crowd of people who had supported him throughout his life, Victor knew there was only one person he needed to ground him and stabilize his thoughts in the intensity of this moment. Finding his husband's face, Yuuri's beautiful, emotional eyes gazing back at him, Victor felt his rapidly beating heart settle. When Yuuri mouthed "I love you," Victor knew without a single doubt that he could handle any challenge thrown his way.

With a quick wink in Yuuri's direction, Victor set his hands flat in front of him and began to address the court for the first time as Judge Nikiforov.

* * *

"Yuuuuurrriiiiiiiii," Victor whispered, his voice loud enough to scare the dogs from their slumber. "Yuuriiii you are so pretty." Poking a finger into Yuuri's cheek, Victor giggled when Yuuri turned to kiss his fingertip. "And you wore the red shirt. Gooooddddddd Yuuuurrriii, I loooooveeee this red shirt!" With fingers far too skilled for how silly drunk he was, Victor began to deftly unbutton the red shirt to set Yuuri's beautiful chest free from its unfair coverings.

Laughing, Yuuri twisted in Victor's grasp, pausing in his pursuit to get Victor upstairs to their bedroom and finding them standing in the exact spot of their first kiss. Going silent for a moment, Yuuri tried to remember all the details of that kiss, proud that he could still do so nearly twenty years after it happened.

"Dollar for your thoughts," Victor proposed, throwing his arms over Yuuri's shoulders. Yuuri had such strong shoulders, broad and handsome and perfect to grip onto whenever Yuuri was fucking Victor into the mattress.

Snorting Yuuri shook his head and brushed Victor's hair from his face. "I guess I don't need to ask you what you're thinking," shaking his head over Victor's drunken and explicit ramblings. Appreciating that Victor had chosen to hold off on his current level of intoxication until it had just been the two of them along with Phichit and Seung Gil, Yuuri planted one foot backwards to keep them from tumbling. "I was just thinking about our first kiss." Settling his hands on Victor's hips, Yuuri softened over the way Victor's smile went a little goofy.

"You wore this shirt," Victor flicked another one of Yuuri's buttons open. "And those pants that present your ass like a goddamn gift to the world." Dropping a hand behind Yuuri, Victor gave his husband's ass an aggressive squeeze. "You looked so nervous and gorgeous and irritated and I just wanted to kiss you. So I did. Because I'm brilliant." Laying his head on Yuuri's shoulder, Victor nuzzled into the side of Yuuri's neck, sighing happily with the scent of Yuuri invading his senses.

"Yes, yes, so brilliant," Yuuri teased, gripping Victor slightly tighter when Victor decided to shift from teasing kisses to firm presses of his tongue. "So brilliant it only took you ten years to figure out I liked you." Jolting backwards when Victor abruptly stood up, Yuuri was relieved when he managed to keep them both standing.

" _Love_ me. You _loved_ me. And _love_ me. 'Cause _I love you_." Pouting Victor cocked his head. "And it took you like a year to propose to me. Remember that?" Sinking back on his recliner, Victor's pout deepened until Yuuri gave in and sat on his lap.

Gently swiping the bangs away from Victor's face, Yuuri gently kissed Victor's forehead before adding, "at least I proposed. Lord knows how long you would have carried my ring around for if I hadn't done it first."

"By five minutes!" Victor protested, rocking forward from his slumped position.

Squawking when Victor shoved him, Yuuri found himself flat on his back on the floor, Victor crawling over him to stare down at him. "The hell are you doing, Nikiforov?" Yuuri teased, shifting to let Victor's body settle between his thighs.

Taking every inch slowly, Victor made sure to apply pressure to every place Yuuri liked it. Finally lying over Yuuri's chest, Victor rested his elbows on the carpet on either side of Yuuri's head. "Is that any way to speak to a judge? I'll throw you in jail on the basis of contempt." Wiggling over Yuuri, Victor situated himself more firmly between Yuuri's legs, rolling his hips simply because he could.

"The ethics committee won't even let me appear in front of you… Judge Nikiforov." Noting the shiver that made Victor's body quake against him, Yuuri took advantage of this potential knowledge. "But if you can find a way to get yourself upstairs, we can definitely put your new set of robes to good use."

Gasping, Victor scrambled to his feet, yanking Yuuri along with him. "Seung Gil was right! You do have a kink for guys in robes! Please don't tell me you have ever gotten off to the thought of Judge Feltsman…" Squealing when Yuuri pinched his side, Victor did his best to appear offended.

"You're killing the mood," Yuuri warned, wrapping his fingers into the fake robes Phichit had insisted Victor wear during their after-party drinking shenanigans. "Now come upstairs and let me plead my case, _your honor_." Smirking Yuuri let Victor go, turning on his heel to run up the stairs.

Ten years had passed since they had shared their first night together in the bedroom they now called their own. In that time, there had been ups and downs, good days and bad, and no shortage of love.

As Victor clumsily chased his best friend, greatest supporter and loving husband up the stairs, he couldn't help happily wondering what the next decade would bring.

Knowing that whatever came next, no matter what obstacles life decided to toss in front of them, they would continue to banter, tease, and most importantly, love their way through all of it, made Victor grin as he rounded the corner into their bedroom.

Standing in the middle the bed, Yuuri made a show of planting his hands on the ceiling, stretching his body in a mock of the same ridiculous attempt of seduction Victor had been teasing him about for the last decade. Laughter exploded between them, neither of them able to contain their happiness as they fell into bed together.

Tomorrow would be another hangover, another day spent recovering from bad decisions, a process which would take far longer than it had in their youth. Yuuri would spend the day hiding in the softness of a hoodie stolen from Victor and Victor would spend every hour whining into the squishy comfort of Yuuri's ever-growing tummy. They would suffer and heal in the same way they did everything else.

Together exactly as they were meant to be… as partners in stupidity, disaster, happiness, love and life. Forever there to love each other through every terrible decision, misstep and stumble. Always forgiving each other for mistakes and loving each other through all the seconds of every day.

And proving that all of the years of suffering from pining hearts were completely worth it to find their own messy, ridiculous, sometimes drunk, _but always happy_ ending.


End file.
